Dulcinea of El Toboso
by ishxallxgood
Summary: Before he knew what was happening, he lost her, and as she left, she took with her the last remaining shred of humanity which resided within him. Eight years later a young girl shows up at the steps of a newly reformed Dressrosa, seeking an audience with the king, clutching a pendant he had long thought lost, as the strings of his heart were being pulled into a new song.
1. Prequel

She almost laughed when he posed the question. It was unfathomable that a man like that would want a girl like her, to be his forever.

She knew her place.

How was she any different than the multitude of women who made their way in and out of his bedroom over the years? Although the fact that he kept coming back to her, was surprising. Then again there was this raw, chemical connection the two of them had, and she know he felt it too. Every time the two of them came together something divine happened, it was hard to explain what, but in those fleeting moments she almost, _almost_ , believed him.

She shook your head again as he cocked an eyebrow, his smile twisting into something dangerous. She laughed in your head, _you'd be my last love, everlasting you and me._ Those words resounded in her mind, causing a scowl to cross her face.

It was definitely not the reaction he had expected when he proposed to her, then again for a man used to getting what he wanted, most of her reactions were not what he was used to.

The first time she met him, they were barely seventeen, and she brushed him off the way she did all the men who made advances at her. He did not take kindly to that, although there was a hint of amusement in his smirk as he continued to pursue her. She did not relent until the second time he found her, a little over a year later. She had found that over the course of a year, she had been unable to get him off her mind, and she was more than willing to give herself to him.

He was different then, still as arrogant as ever, but oh so different. She had caught him tensing up once, when a Celestial Dragon passed through the town, something changed in his demeanor and it terrified and broke her heart at the same time. Later that night he awoke in a cold sweat, and poured out his soul to her. She would never forget the look on his face that night, although she have never seen it since. He was so beautiful and so broken, yet so petrifying and arrogant at the same time. He had been so vulnerable in those early years, but time has hardened him, and sometimes she would forget that deep, deep down inside, he was a broken little boy.

"No." She repeated, when he placed his hands on your hips again, pulling her roughly against him. That question leaving his lips again.

He let out a low growl, an annoyance overtaking his features as she looked defiantly into his eyes. "And why not, Aldonza?"

"Because, Doffy," She replied, giving into his hands. "I don't believe you, but more importantly, I don't want to."

"What can I do to convince you?" He asked, slamming her down against him, eliciting a moan from her.

"Nothing." She gasped, her body moving against his. "Absolutely nothing."

"I could make you so happy." He rumbled in her ear, sending an electric current through her body as he picked up the pace.

She moaned his name as he slammed against her again and again. "You already do."

"Then be mine, forever."

"No." She repeated, in between moans.

"Why not?" He growled as he tightened his grip on her hips, convulsing inside her.

She shuddered against him before collapsing on top of him. "Because, I don't want to."

"That is not a valid reason."

She sighed, her hands roaming through his hair as she pulled his head down so she can press your lips upon his. "It is to me."

Honestly, she wanted everything and nothing to do with him. In moments like these she felt like she could definitely spend a lifetime with him, but she also knew that these moments were fleeting, they always were. Every time the two of them came together like this she held his heart in her hands, but the moment it was over he slipped back into that persona which scared her to her core. It terrified her the things he was capable of, the things she had seen him do. She knew that no matter how much she enjoyed his company, no matter how much she loved broken little boy inside of him, he was never going to coming out again, and she could not, would not be able to love the man he had become. She could not spend a lifetime with this man, there was no way.

Pulling herself off of him, she quickly dressed, to his disapproval. "I'm giving you up." She said softly, ignoring the intense aura coming off of him.

"You don't mean that." He replied with a knowing smirk.

She let out a sigh, no, she did mean it. She could not do this any longer, she was just simply not strong enough to endure his love. "I've forgiven it all, so set me free." She turned to give him the saddest smile. "Send my love to your new lover, treat her better. We've gotta let go of all of our ghosts, we both know we ain't kids no more."

His face fell when those words left her lips, she did not want to leave him this way, but she had to. If she stayed she might just give into his ridiculous proposition, and she did not want that. He was simply too strong, and she were trembling, she could not handle the hot heat rising. He was in an entirely different league than her, and there was no way she could ever possibly keep up with him. She knew that she would end up resenting him with all she had.

She knew this was for the best, and before she could change her mind or he recovered from the blow of her words, she left, taking with her the last remaining shred of humanity which resided within him.

* * *

The air was tense as the Donquixote Pirates entered the small tavern, their Captain exuding an intensely deadly aura which contradicted the carefree smile plastered on his face. The few closest to him knew he was irritated, by what they had still yet to pinpoint, but they knew better than to pry when he was in one of those moods. They had their theories though, the most popular one being that it had to do with a woman. Which one they were not sure, but it would be the only explanation they could come up with on why they kept circling back to this particular island, and why each time they docked he made it his mission to seek out a specific tavern.

Truth was it did have to do with a woman, a woman who he simply could not get his mind off of, a woman who slipped through his hands, a woman who he wanted, no, needed to claim again. He needed her more than he had ever needed anything in his life, there was a hunger, a thirst that he could simply not fill until he had her again. It was maddening that no matter how hard he tried he just simply could not shake this desire he had for her.

He growled as the tavern showed absolutely no signs of her, this was her place, she should have been here, but the past three times he had come she was nowhere to be seen. No one in that town knew where she was, and he seriously had half a mind to just burn it to the ground. In fact he had to stop Diamante and Trebol from doing just that the last time there were here, because for some inexplicable reason he had a feeling that she was still there, and he simply could not bring himself to destroy her yet.

Although the very thought that she had rejected him for some lesser man drove him to the brink of insanity, and in those moments a monster was unleashed. A ruthless monster which tore through towns destroying everything in its wake. The madness was revitalizing, the taste and screams of pain he inflicted upon others made him feel so alive, it validated him, and helped numb that burning ache within his heart.

In all honesty, she was not even that special, sure she was beautiful, but he had no shortage of beautiful women, in fact he had take three or four women far more beautiful than her just the other day, but they simply did not sate him the way she did. Whenever he was with her something was stirred up within his heart, something magical happened between them, something so mind numbingly devine. No easy love could ever make him feel the same, so he continued to chase her shadow.

She seemed to just vanish from existence, and as the years passed, he found himself subconsciously haunting that small area in the North Blue, searching. In fact wherever he went he seemed to find himself searching for her ghost in the room, oh he had not been lying when he told her his love was everlasting. No, that was not a lie he would tell so easily, and he swore to himself that if he ever found her again, he would bind her to him, with strings so tight she would never be able escape him again.


	2. Papa

"Mama, do I have a papa?"

"Of course you have a papa, sweetheart."

"Is he dead?"

Her mother let out a laugh, "Of course he's not dead. Your papa wouldn't die so easily."

Bright blue eyes full of questions stared up at her mother, "Then how come I've never met him?"

"Because," her mother replied, pulling the seven year old into her arms. Unsure of how to answer that question, she could never tell her daughter that it was because her father was a terrifying man, she did not want to taint his image like that. She wanted her daughter to believe that her father was everything the little girl could ever want. "Your papa's love was too strong, and mama did not know how to contain it without it destroying her."

The little girl frowned at this answer, it did not sit right with her. "Do you not love papa anymore?"

"Oh no sweetheart, I still love your papa, very much, more than I probably should."

"Then why can't we go see him?"

The woman let out a sigh, "Because mama broke his heart a long time ago, long before you were born, and mama's not strong enough to face him these days." She did not know why she was telling all this to a seven year old, the little girl could not possibly understand any of it, all she wanted was to go meet her papa. She could not do it though, she could not face that man again, not after all this time, because she knew, she knew the moment she saw him she would be his, forever. It was not what she wanted, and she certainly knew that there was no escaping that man twice.

Still, a little part of her wanted to go to him, she still loved him deeply despite everything he had become, besides, every little girl needs a father, and she knew, deep down, she knew he would have loved that little girl fiercely. It was actually one of the many reasons why she had decided to keep the little darling away from him. He would hate her for it when he found out, but that man was all sorts of extremes, and she wanted freedom for her child, not an inevitable cage. How could she possibly convey that to a little girl who simply wants the love of her father?

"What was he like?"

"The sun."

"You're so silly mama, how could he possibly be like the sun?" The little girl laughed, wriggling in her mother's arms, turning so she could see the expressions on her mother's face more clearly.

"Oh but he is, sweetheart." She said with a smile. "You see, he is so bright and brilliant and beautiful, just like the sun, and all those around him can not help but be caught up in his light." She gave the little girl a kiss on the forehead. _But he is also terrifyingly powerful, and if you stayed in his presence for too long you would feel that power just emanating off of him, burning you to the core._ "You should also know that he was a god once."

"Really? A god?" The girl asked, her eyes growing large.

"Mmhmm. You have god blood running through your veins, never forget that."

Satisfied with the answer, the little girl wriggled out of her mother's arms and ran off to play with her friends, declaring that her papa was a god, and that was why they have never met him. The woman chuckled to herself as she watched her daughter run off, her smile waning as she unfolded the newspaper which had been dropped off during their conversation.

Fate had a funny way of toying with her. It had been years since she had actually spoken about that man, for the longest time simply seeing his eyes reflected in her daughter's face had been enough for her. Having to answer all those questions about him, having to admit to herself that she still loved him had been hard enough, but to open the morning paper just moments after speaking about him, and see his face plastered on the front page, in all its magnificent glory, was just simply too much for her.

Her heart ached for him, even though she knew there was nothing left of the boy she once knew, her heart still ached for him. What she would give to be back in his arms again, to lose herself in that bliss which was him, to hold his heart within her hands again. A little part of her wondered if he would still remember who she was, eight years was a long time, and she knew better than to think that he had not found another woman or two, or thirty to fill his emptiness. He probably would not remember her if she showed up in front of him again, she was no longer that vibrant girl he had known in the past. All she was now was a shell of her former self, broken and battered, with little left to give.

Letting out a sigh, she let her eyes wander over that picture of him again, quickly skimming the words which accompanied it. Evidently he was a king now, such a fitting title for him. She always knew he had been born to rule, although at the same time, she questioned whether or not it was fair for that poor kingdom to be ruled by the likes of him. He was oh so cruel and sadistic, and took so much pleasure in the misery of others. Although she did have to admit, that he did have a softer side to him, one that many people would never of had the pleasure of knowing, one that he only showed to a select few. She had seen the way he cared for that little _family_ of his, the concern and loyalty he had for them, from the elders who groomed him, to the littles he took in. It was how she knew that he would have loved that little girl more than words could ever express, but she also knew first hand that he was also cruel in his love, and she knew that his love was not the kind of love she wanted for her daughter.

Unfortunately, fate had a nasty habit of messing with her, and in less than a year since her daughter first asked about her father, she found herself having to relinquish control of the girl over to him.

"Sweetheart, come here." She said, beckoning her daughter to her.

"Yes mama?" Bright blue eyes looked down at her, filled with concern.

Her heart swelled with pride as she stared back into those blue eyes. Eight years old and she already had the demeanor of a little lady, it was a shame she would never live to see her thrive as a young woman. "I want you to have this." She said, as her fingers worked to unclasp the necklace which hung low around her neck.

"But mama, that's your precious treasure." The girl said, confusion flashing through her eyes.

"I know." Her mother said sadly, "I want you to have it. It will be a shield for you, never take it off, and always keep it close to your heart."

"I don't understand."

She let out a heavy sigh, reluctant to continue. "Sweetheart, mama does not have long left. We both knew this day was coming, but it came much sooner than I had anticipated."

Nodding the girl took the delicate piece of jewelry with trembling hands, fixing the clasp around her neck, allowing the pendant to swing down and fall against her chest. "What am I going to do without you mama?" She asked, the tears swelling up in her eyes.

"I'm going to be taking you to your papa."

"My papa?"

"Yes. I would like it very much to see him one last time before I go."

The girl did not know whether or not to be happy, angry or sad. "What if he rejects me?" She asked, a tear slipping out of her eyes.

"He would never reject you." She replied with a smile, brushing the tears from her daughter's face.

"How do you know that?"

"Because I know that man."

"Then why did you wait until now?" The words came out a lot angrier than she had intended, but her mother understood.

"Lots of reasons, sweetheart, but mainly, because I know that man." Her mother repeated knowingly. "Sweetheart, please believe me when I say that everything I did for you was because I love you, even keeping you separated from your papa. I have no doubt in my mind that he would have loved you with everything he had, but I also know that man, and so I chose what I believed was the better life for you."

The girl nodded sadly. She knew how much her mother loved her, she also knew that her mother would never do anything to intentionally hurt her, how hard it must be for her mother to come to this decision. "I'm sorry mama."

"Don't be my love. This is what fate chose for us, perhaps this is my punishment for trying to keep the two of you apart. I'm sorry I selfishly kept you away from him, I'm sorry that I never had the strength to see him again, I'm sorry that I could not give you the life I wanted you to have…" Her words got caught in her throat, as a painful cough tore through her body.

"Mama!" The girl cried, pulling her mother into an embrace.

"I'm okay, sweetheart." The warmth of her daughter's embrace helped calm the raging storm within her. Letting out a heavy sigh she regained her composure and reached for a small box tucked away inside a drawer. Pulling out an old wanted poster and the article from a year ago she handed it to the girl.

"What's this?" The girl asked, taking the papers from her mother.

"Your father. His name is Donquixote Doflamingo."

Glancing at the wanted poster the girl felt a shiver run through her body. "He's a pirate?"

She let out a small laugh, "kind of my dear."

"But you said he was a god…"

"No, I said he was a god _once_. That was a very long time ago. Look at the other paper, sweetheart."

The girl read over the article, her eyes widening, "Wait, so he's a king now? First he's a god, then he's a pirate and now he's a king?"

Her mother laughed, a long hearty laugh, one that she had not laughed in a long time. "I suppose so. Makes him sound so much larger than life when you put it that way."

"Mama, this place, it's in the New World."

"I know sweetheart." She replied, stroking her daughter's hair. "Which is why we need to leave soon. If we wait, I won't have the strength to make the journey."

"Can you tell me more about my papa? Like how you guys met?"

"Of course, sweetheart." She said with a smile. "Mama first met papa when she was barely seventeen… your papa was a young pirate captain who was used to getting whatever it was he wanted, and mama, well mama had absolutely no interest in him. Boys like that always spelled trouble, remember that."

The girl chuckled. "Yes, mama. But how did you guys fall in love?"

"Well, papa was very persistent, and even though mama never acknowledged him, there was something about him that mama just couldn't shake. Unfortunately for your papa, pirates never stayed in one place too long, and before he could truly capture mama's heart he had to leave."

"Your story doesn't make sense mama, I thought you were going to tell me how you fell in love."

"I'm getting to that sweetheart." She said with a chuckle. "You see, even though mama never acknowledged papa's advances, mama couldn't get him out of her head, not even after he had been long gone. You see, your papa was the most beautiful and captivating man mama had ever met, all other men paled in comparison to him, holds true to this day. Anyway, so every time mama heard news of pirates docking at the port, mama would rush towards the harbor in hopes that it she would see his ship."

"How would you know it was his ship? Aren't all pirate ships the same?"

She laughed, "No sweetheart, they're not, and your papa, well your papa was, is, a very flamboyant man."

"What does flamboyant mean?"

"It means he tends to attract a lot of attention to himself. You see, his ship was bright pink, and shaped like a giant flamingo."

"Hahaha, really? A giant pink flamingo?" The girl doubled over in laughter. "You're making this up."

"I wish I were, sweetheart, but I'm not. You'll see. Giant pink flamingo." She said waving her arms for emphasis. "Anyway, a little over a year later I saw him again, I didn't think he'd remember me, I was just some girl on some random island he visited once, but him, oh I could never forget him. For a year I harbored feelings for that man, and in his absence it would seem I had fallen head over heels for him. The moment he found me again, my heart knew that this was the man I would love until the day I died."

"So that's it?"

"Basically. Mama didn't want to become a pirate, so she stayed in that town, and your papa, well your papa was going to rule the world one day. Over the years he would always circle back to that town, and we would always find each other again, love is a funny thing my dear, it makes you do crazy things. Your papa was, is, a great man, destined for great things, mama's just, well mama. I wasn't made for that life, and I didn't want that life, not for me, and especially not for you. So I set him free, set me free."

"That's sad." The girl said, looking at the picture of her father again. "Love should have conquered. Like it does in the books."

"Oh but it did, sweetheart."

"How's that?"

"I have you." She pulled the girl close. "You are the best thing to ever happen to me, and you, you are the cumulation of our love."


	3. Entering Dressrosa

As the ship drew closer to the island the first thing she noticed was the large rock formations lining the perimeter. It made the country seem rough, unwelcoming, nothing like the books she had read about it.

"Mama, we made it." She whispered to the sea, knowing her mother was out there somewhere, watching over her. They had been so close, so very close when her mother passed, but perhaps it was better this way. She knew her mother had made this trip for her, that if she had really wanted to see that man one last time she would not have waited until her condition was so dire.

Disembarking, she wiped the tears from her eyes, shifting the weight of the large pack on her back she stepped off into the lively port. The city was simply breathtaking. Beautiful mosaics graced the walls of the many terraces, large columns lined the buildings, while the most beautiful women she had ever seen danced fiercely, their long skirts whipping about them as they moved, but best of all were all the little toys running around the city as if they were alive. She was so entranced by everything the place had to offer, the sights, sounds, and smells, it almost overwhelmed the young girl and she could feel the anxiety of finding her way to the palace begin to cripple her.

How was she, a simple eight year old from a small town on an little island thousands of miles away, supposed to navigate a city of this magnitude and find her way into the presence of the king. She needed some sort of plan, and wandering aimlessly through the city was not it. Fingering her mother's pendant she decided to make her way toward the large colosseum in the distance, a landmark like that seemed like an appropriate first step.

As she approached the large, open building, she could hear the sounds of the crowd cheering, and what she supposed was a fierce battle ensuing. Intrigued, she found herself meandering through the open columns and thick crowds until she found a nondescript spot in which to watch from. The colosseum was huge, and she found that even though she had an obstructed view of the action below, she really could make out exactly what was happening.

The scene spread out before did little for her, it neither disgusted nor enthralled her. Honestly, the thing that truly captured her attention in that colosseum was the figure seated in the Imperial Box. Evidently finding the king was an easy task, her instinct had brought her within the very space he currently occupied. Of course, gaining an audience with the king would be an entirely different matter. She tried to remember what her mother had advised her to do, but all her advice seemed foolish. How was a mere child supposed to impress upon people of importance that she was significant enough to garner an audience with a king?

Her fingers twitched around the pendant again as her eyes drank in the man seated, two hundred some odd feet away from where she stood. Mama had been right, staring at him was very much like staring at the sun, and he was most definitely, by far the most beautiful man she had ever seen. When he suddenly moved and looked up into the crowd, she could have sworn he was looking directly at her, which she knew was an impossibility. There must have been over ten thousand people surrounding her, it would be unfathomable to think that he would pick her out of the crowd.

Letting out a sigh she trailed her eyes back to the gory scene in the arena before her, wondering what it was that drove men to want fight against each other like that, and why so many people took pleasure in watching it. Shrugging she tried to focus on coming up with a plan, it was not like she could just make her way over to the Imperial Box and demand an audience… or can she?

Sure, it was risky, but then again, the best things in life were risky. What's the worse they could do to her, throw her in with those gladiators? She shuddered at the thought, she would not last a second down there. Okay, so there were horrible things they could do to her, but she was just a child, perhaps they would be more lenient toward a child. Then her mind wandered back to those words her mother spoke when she gave her that necklace, _It will be a shield for you, never take it off, and always keep it close to your heart._ What did it mean? Mama never told her where she got the necklace from, or what it was, only that it was her most precious treasure.

Closing her fist around that pendant she decided to risk it, and use that necklace as a shield. Slipping away from the wall, she snaked her way back down toward the main level, moving quickly toward the southern entrance, hoping to get herself as close to the Box as possible. She was lucky that this fight was evidently quite entertaining, and no one seemed to pay any mind to the young girl running all around the colosseum.

Just as she thought she was in the clear a large hand grabbed her roughly by her pack, lifting her off her feet, turning her so that she was now facing him. "Uhahahaha, what is a little brat like you doing, running all around my colosseum?"

Frozen in terror, she slowly lifts her eyes to look at the man who caught her, her breath hitching in her throat as she took in his features. His brown hair and large teeth, which accentuated the sadistic smile on his face, made her think of one of the men her mother had told her to keep an eye out for, but it was the diamond shaped pendant around his neck that solidified in her mind that he was indeed one of the men mama had told her to seek out.

She tried to find her voice, to say something, anything, but all she could do was fidget nervously with that pendant around her neck. The motion drew the large man's eyes to her hands, his posture suddenly stiffening when he caught sight of what it was she was fidgeting with.

"Show me that pendant." He demanded, almost dropping her when she held the necklace out, the pendant dangling freely. "Where did you get that?"

"Ma… ma…" She squeaked, flinching when he shot her a glare. Clearing her throat she took a deep breath, attempting to calm her nerves. "My mama gave it to me." She said, trying to sound as bold as she could.

"Uhahahaha," He laughed again, and she could not tell if it was in amusement or discontent. "Is that right? Well then little miss, you shall be coming with me."

He did not bother putting her down as he took long strides toward the arena, tucking the child under his arm as he walked. She took note of the direction they were headed, wondering if it really was going to be that easy. Mama did say, the easiest way to find herself before her father was probably going to be through one of those men, she had just not expected them to be so terrifying up close.

"Doffy," the man said as they entered back into the shouts and cheers of the arena, the sudden stench of blood and sweat hitting her senses as she was now that much closer to the action. "I have a little present for you." He said, dropping her ungracefully onto the ground, in front of the feet of who, she could only assume, was the man she was looking for.

Her heart suddenly started beating uncontrollably in her chest, her hands clenched around the pendant, as she tried to lift her eyes up toward the man before her.

"Fuffuffuffuffu," the man laughed. "And tell me Diamante, what would you have me do with this child?"

The man, Diamante, nudged her softly with his foot. "Show him the pendant." He ordered, amusement lacing his words.

Timidly she opened her hand, the pendant sitting neatly in her palm, her nerves preventing her from lifting her head. She could feel his unadulterated attention on her now, his eyes bearing a hole into her palm. "Look at me child." He commanded, and her body obliged him as she slowly lifted her head, her eyes locking into his through those red tinted lenses.

He needed no explanation to know who this child was, her resemblance to her mother was striking, and he knew, that woman would not have been foolish enough to send him a child who was not his. A flash of anger tore through him, as the understanding that not only had she denied him of herself all these years, but that she had also denied him the knowledge of a child, settled on his mind. "Where is your mother?" He asked, that over confident smile of his waning into something which resembled a grimace.

She swallowed hard, a different storm began brewing in her heart as his words reached her ears. Her muscles relaxed as she slumped down against her feet, her arms dropping to her sides, her eyes never leaving his as a swarm of emotions raked through her. "Mama…" she started, her voice quivering, "Mama…" the tears slipped from her eyes and she tried to find the words. "Mama, tried her hardest to make it here… honest she did..." A sob tore through her body, "she was so close too… three days…" She shuddered as another sob escaped her lips. "Mama's one with the sea now… dancing in the waves." She could not bring herself to say the words, imama's dead/i.

He sat patiently as the young girl by his feet attempted to answer his question. The moment that first tear fell from her eyes he already knew the answer, but he allowed her the time mourn and finish her thought. He could feel a scowl over take his features, as it enraged him to know that that woman had effectively slipped through his fingers for good.

Nine years. Nine years he had searched for her, nine years he had sought to reclaim that piece of him she had stolen, never in all that time had he ever even considered the fact she could have borne him a child. How dare she. How dare she reject his love and hide herself from him for nine years, only to bear a child and keep her hidden from him too. This child, so innocent, so pure, so much like her mother. He wanted to hate her, to reject her, but he could not bring himself to do so. She was so sweet, so divine, so undeniably his, yet he could see so much of her mother inside that child, but then there were those eyes. Those eyes, oh he knew those eyes, and they drew him to her, in a way that nothing else in this world could ever do. "Come here." He said gently, gesturing to the space beside him.

Shaking off her pack, she wiped at the tears on her face and pulled herself up onto the couch he was lounging on, filling the space he had indicated. His arm came down around her, pulling her close to him, as his hand ghosted across her chest, fingers gently picking up that pendant which rested against her heart.

"What did your mother tell you of this?" He asked, passing the pendant through his fingers.

"Nothing." The girl admitted. "All she ever said was that it was her most precious treasure… that it would be my shield, to never take it off, and to keep it close to my heart."

He chuckled, so typical of that woman. "It was mine once."

"So I figured." She replied, plucking it from his hand, her fingers tingling as they brushed against his. "What is it?"

"The Donquixote family crest."

"Oh," She mouthed silently, her eyes examining the intricate pendant. "Would you like it back?"

"Fuffuffuffuffu, defying your mother already are we?" He asked with a laugh. "Did she not tell you to never take it off?"

Sulking she sunk low into the couch, "Yes, but it's your family crest…"

He laughed again and ruffled her hair, "Ah, but it's your family crest too, keep it."

She nodded as the weight of his words sunk in, releasing the pendant she let it fall against her chest again and leaned her head against him. Just like that he had accepted her, it was unfathomable. She had never dreamed that this day would come, although a part of her longed to be back in that little island up North, tucked away in a forgotten corner of the North Blue, living out her carefree life with her mother. She never wanted this, to trade her mother for her father, but she also knew that one could not possibly exist within the same realm as the other. That much her mother had made clear.

Glancing up at the man next to her she could not help but wonder why. Mama had said they could not see him because she had broken his heart, but he did not seem broken, and the way he so easily accepted her told her that he too still loved mama. Then again, mama surely knew that already, for she had said that he would willingly accept her, then why could they not have all coexisted together?

Turning his head toward her, he looked down to meet her gaze, and flashed her a dazzling smile, "So tell me sweetheart, what is your name."

Her breath hitched in her throat as that pet name slipped out of his mouth. It sounded so different coming from him, her mother had poured so much more sweetness into that word, but still, it excited her, and made her feel at home. "Dulcinea."

"Dulcinea, eh?" He said, as his tongue flicked over his lower lip, before that smile returned. "I like it. So tell me, Dulcinea, where had your mother been hiding you all this time?"

"Hiding?" She asked as a quizzical look crossed her face, "We were never hiding."

"Hmm," He mused, "So I suppose you're just going to tell me you've been on that island the whole time?"

"That island? El Toboso?"

"Fuffuffuffuffu, yes El Toboso." He said with a laugh, a hint of irritation in his voice. "How is it that I could never find any trace of her there?"

She shrugged, "I don't know what to tell you. Mama and I lived there my whole life."

"And what was it that your mother did there?"

"What did mama do?" His line of questioning did not really make much sense to her. It was not like mama had made an effort to hid or anything, at least not from what she could remember, they were always just there, existing in that little port town. "Mama ran a little tavern in town…"

Gritting his teeth, his smile tightened, and he could feel that vein above his brow throb. He wanted to scream in aggravation, this child, her words were taxing his patience. There was an honesty in her eyes though, and he knew she spoke the truth, but the truth did not line up with his reality. He scoured that island for any trace of that woman, more times than he could count, and that tavern, he knew exactly what tavern she was talking about, he had to stop himself from burning it to the ground, so many times.

She could feel the diabolical aura radiating off of him, he was not happy with her answers, but she really did not know what else to say. That was where they existed, day in and day out, working and living out of that tavern, if he really did return as often as it seemed, they surely would have seen him. Then again… "Oh!" She exclaimed suddenly, "That's right! Every so often mama would take me on holiday, and we would go to that little cabin in the woods to relax and recharge, as mama would call it."

He raised an eyebrow, as he considered the possibility that these so-called holidays could have coincidentally coincided with his visits to that island. That woman was evidently craftier and more well informed than he had assumed, then again this was the same woman, who had the power to hold his heart in her hands.

Letting out a slight "tsk" with the click of his tongue he decided to drop the subject. The likelihood that those little holidays were an attempt to avoid him was compelling enough. Knowing whether or not it was true would not change the fact that she had effectively eluded him for nine years and was now gone.

"So what did your mother tell you of me?" He asked, a playful smile replacing the strained one.

"Hmm," she mused, glad for the change of subject. "Mama said that you were like the sun, and a god once."

He chuckled, "That's true, you have god blood running through your veins, never forget that."

She shuddered in delight at his words, words which echoed her mother's. It was undeniable to her that those two shared a bond, it was such a shame that the two could not exist in the same space. She would have liked that very much. A bright smile broke out across her face, her eyes twinkling, as she remembered something else her mother had told her, "Mama also said that you had a ship shaped like a giant pink flamingo!"

His laughter rang out across the arena, startling the other three men in the Imperial Box. "That I do. Shall I take you sailing on it one day?"

Dulcinea nodded her head furiously, "Yes please." She had taken everything he mother had said about this man with a grain of salt, but it would seem as if her mother had not exaggerated anything about him. Losing her mother had been the most heart wrenching thing she had ever experienced, a little part of her was not sure that she would have ever been able to recover, but she found herself lost within the radiance of this man's love. In that moment, she knew, she knew that his love would be able to sustain her through all over her pain, and that as long as she had him, she would not need anyone else in her life.


	4. Mama

She stared at the ornate canopy hanging over the bed as she tried to will herself to sleep. Her mind was racing and her heart was still beating out of her chest. The day had been surreal, and a little part of her believed that if she were to close her eyes and sleep, she would come to realize that it was all a dream. It did not matter much though, whether she closed her eyes or not, she knew that sleep would not come.

Sighing she pulled herself from the bed, it would seem that sleep would once again elude her that night, they way it did every night since the night her mother died. Stepping out into the wide balcony which stretched out beyond the walls of the room she was given, she pulled herself up onto the thick railing and stared up into the starry night sky.

The night was quiet and peaceful, and the twinkling stars soothed her aching heart. A gentle breeze blew around her and she could almost feel her mother's embrace. The tears slowly trickled down her face as she came to terms with the fact that this was her new life now, that her mother was really gone, and she would never again feel those arms surround her. She had a new family now, a large eccentric family, who seemed to accepted her far more openly than she had expected them too, but perhaps that had more to do with her father, and the fact that they all seemed to be fiercely loyal to him.

Her father. A man who was indeed brighter than the sun, and more brilliant than anything she had ever seen or known, how her mother resisted his love for so long was beyond her. The moment she saw him she was smitten, not because he was her father, but because the power and majesty he radiated was simply breathtaking. Mama had been right when she had said that all other men paled in comparison to him, in fact to her _everyone_ paled in comparison to him, perhaps even her mother.

"Fuffuffuffuffu, can't sleep?"

His voice pulled her from her thoughts and she hastily wiped at the tears on her face before she turned to face him. "No, I haven't been able to sleep since mama died." She admitted.

The smile on his face faded, and a solemn expression overtook his striking features. He had been so absorbed with this child for the better part of the day, that he had not really allowed the of weight of Aldonza's death to really sink in. Hearing those two words actually come out of that child's mouth struck him in the heart, and for the first time since he had been made aware of her death, he did not feel any anger toward her.

"What happened to her?" He asked, as he perched himself onto the railing next to her, one foot tucked under him, the other leg dangling off the exterior edge.

His proximity to her eased her soul and she let out a breath, thinking back to how it all started. "The short answer? She was attacked by a pirate about a year ago and never really recovered. The doctors suspected that she was poisoned, but by what they were never able to figure out."

A blinding rage tore through him as he refused to accept that her death was due to an act of _some pirate_. "Elaborate." He said through gritted teeth, infuriated by the fact that her life was cut short by another man, when he should have been the only person in this world to have had the power to hold her life in his hands.

She really did not want to elaborate, despite the fact that there was so much anger and emotion in that one word, but when she looked over at him, there was also this sadness etched into his beautiful features which broke her heart completely. So reluctantly, she found herself swimming in half forgotten memories of her mother, "Where do I start?" She asked the night air.

"Mama was always kind and approachable, a sweetness poured off of her which attracted all sorts of people to the little tavern." She chuckled, "But you should have known that already. Thing was though, mama wasn't always sweet, she could be absolutely terrifying too. You see, what mama hated most in the world was when, what she referred to as, inferior men, tried to pick her up."

He let out a laugh and felt that anger subside, a cocky smile spreading across his lips. It stroked his ego and put his mind at ease to know that although she given him up, she had also found that every other man in existence paled in comparison to him. It pleased him to know that he was effectively the one and only man in this world who had ever of had or ever will have the pleasure of tasting her.

"She never had a problem with any of the townsfolk, they all knew better… unfortunately, visitors did not know this about mama, and her charisma and charm drew so many unfortunate men to her. Normally it was not a problem unless they did not get the hint, and when that happened mama unleashed a fury upon them that would rival the fiercest storm. It was so exhilarating watching mama put those men in their place. There was just something so mesmerizing about the way mama cut those men down, she was so passionate, so beautiful, so deadly… so alive."

His tongue lolled out of his mouth, flicking over his lower lip as he pictured the scene. It brought him so much joy to know this side of her existed. To know that after all these years, she simply could not give him up, that he still haunted her the way she haunted him. Then there was this child, this child who simply oozed sweetness and innocence, but who at her core, had his blood pumping through her veins. He loved it, that energy, that untapped potential, all wrapped up in the sweetest package. Oh he could just eat her up.

Letting out a yawn she rubbed at her eyes, before continuing. "Thing was, mama never had any problems taking down these men, whether they were a pirate or a Marine, an ordinary sailor or a Captain, a fruit user or not, mama dispatched them all the same. Probably because they were so enamored by her charm, that they never really put up much of a fight, but that's not to say mama never got injured or anything. It was just never anything serious, until that day."

She furrowed her brows as she images of that day came back to her, it was definitely not a day she liked thinking about, let alone talking about. "The day started like any other, sure the tavern was a little bit rowdier than usual due to the fact that there were several different pirates docked at the port, with news of an additional ship approaching. Mama didn't think much of it though, business was business and honestly, these other pirates had been around long enough to know not to bother mama. It was the Captain of this new ship that turned out to be a problem. He had gotten drunk rather quickly, and simply did not know how to take no for an answer. This infuriated mama, and then the man had the gall to put his hands on mama.

Even so, things were going the way they always went, mama fighting fiercely, a look of utter contempt and disgust on her face as she tried to purge this man from existence, but then…" She paused, her hand reaching up and closing around the pendant which hung above her heart. "... then he caught of glimpse of mama's necklace and something in him snapped. He became crazed, like a man possessed and he attacked mama ferociously, ultimately stabbing her half a dozen times before the other men in the room managed to pulled him off of her.

There was so much blood, I had never seen mama beaten so badly before, oh how I wanted to kill that man myself. Everyone was in a wild panic, the town doctors were called in, but luckily there was a young pirate Captain there who also happened to be a skilled doctor. His technique was the most mesmerizing thing ever, and did the best he could to help mama before the town doctors arrived, and I honestly think mama lasted as long as she did because of him.

Unfortunately, when mama eventually recovered from those stab wounds there was something off about her. Nobody could figure out what it was that was wrong with her, the doctors all assumed she was poisoned, but that young doctor said that he couldn't detect any foreign substances inside her. It was almost like someone put out mama's light. That spark she had that drew everyone to her disappeared, and it seemed like she became an empty shell of the person she once was."

She wiped furiously at the tears streaming down her face, and he gently pulled her into his lap, wrapping his arms around her as he tried to quell that anger inside. "What happened to the pirate who stabbed her?" He asked in a low growl.

"I don't know."

She could feel him breathing heavily as he processed everything she had told him. "Do you remember how he looked?"

She sighed, closing her eyes as she leaned back against him, trying to pull up the images of that man again. "Ugly?" She offered, knowing it was not helpful. What did that man look like? She tried to recall him, but there were so many emotions surrounding him that it made it difficult, because to her he was a monster, and her brain refused to give him an actual face. "I'm sorry," she said sadly. "I don't remember."

He clicked his tongue in disapproval, but it was not like he would hold the fact that she could not remember against her. She was just a child who suffered a trauma. He would have to find out though, he needed to ensure that that man was sufficiently punished for taking from him what was his. This was definitely not a slight he would leave unsettled.

He would have to take a trip to the North Blue, someone in that town knows who did this, and they will talk. He will make them talk, even if he had to burn the place down to the ground. All these years he actually believed them, and held his anger back when they said they had no idea where she was. How she managed to get a whole town to love her more than they would ever fear him, was beyond his imagination. This woman. Oh the power she held in her palm, it was no wonder she was the only person in the world capable of capturing his heart. His eyes filtered down to the little girl now asleep in his arms, a warmth filled his being as he took in her sleeping form, well maybe not the only person.


	5. Righting Wrongs

The days slipped by into blissful weeks, and before she knew it the seasons had begun to change. Those damp tropical days heavy with moisture began to thin into a mild autumn, with pleasant days and brisk nights.

During the long blissful days she had found herself assimilating nicely into her new life. She absorbed herself in her new daily routine. Days lidden with various lessons, which she delved into with a vigor that impressed even her father. She had an insatiable thirst for knowledge, believing in the truth her mother once impressed upon her, that with a proper understanding of the world and how it functions, nothing could possibly stand in her way. So she sought to absorb everything she could.

Her father was more than happy to provide her with all the books, newspapers, tutors, anything she could ever want. He too believed in the power of knowledge, for it was a critical component to navigating this crazy and unpredictable world they lived in, but he also believed in the power of strength. Strength to endure, strength to defend, strength to avenge, and so on top of her studies she was also trained by them all. In the way of the sword, in way of the gun, hand to hand combat, and evasive maneuvers, he even took it upon himself to train her personally whenever he had the time.

So the days passed in a haze, and she found endless joy in the company of her new family, the nights though, the nights were an entirely different story. The nights always seemed so cold and distant, with nothing to distract her from that aching in her heart. During the quiet, lonely nights she would find herself lost in the reality that she would never again see her mother. She found that no matter how many days passed, no matter how happy she was under the bright shining sun, the blanket of night always reminded her of the hole inside her heart, but the lonely nights also held her greatest comfort.

For it was in the cover of darkness, amidst all her heartache and pain, that she was able to find solace in the light that was her father. For the first few nights there, she found that no matter how hard she tried, sleep would not come to her as she unsuccessfully tossed about in that oversided bed of hers, before finding her way out into the quiet night. Sitting there under the brilliant stars, she would be absorbed in her own suffering, until her father would come out and sit with her, pulling her into his arms where she would ultimately fall asleep. Recently though, she had taken to skipping the pretense and proceed directly out onto the balcony, perching herself on that railing, until he would inevitably come out to fetch her.

The thing was though, he needed her just about as much as she needed him. Sure, in the beginning he chose to comfort her out of a sense of obligation. For he too knew the pain of losing a beloved mother, but as the nights slipped by he had come to find that having her in his arms gave him a sense of peace he had never known before. With her there he found that he was released from the grasp of his past, and that the nightmares which plagued for so many, many, many nights no longer lingered within reach. So it became their nightly routine, and as the days turned to weeks, and the weeks months, the two of them found that they could no longer sleep without the presence of the other.

"Dulci-chan!~"

Opening her eyes she pulled herself up, lifting her head out from under the water of the bath. "Oh, hi Sugar!" She called to the girl approaching her, leaning back against the bath, allowing the warm water to soothe her sore muscles.

The older girl skipped over to her, settling herself down by the edge of the tub flicking at the loose bubbles with her feet. "Young master asked me to come fetch you."

"Oh?" She asked squeezing the water from her hair as she got out of the bath, wrapping a towel around herself. It was unusual for him to seek her out at this hour. "What's going on?"

"We're going sailing!" Sugar exclaimed excitedly. "Young master also asked that you pack some winter clothes too, evidently it's going to be cold where we're going."

"We're going sailing!?" Giddily she pulled on her clothes, running to her room she proceeded to shove all the winter clothes she owned into a pack. She had almost forgotten all about that giant pink flamingo ship he had promised show her and take her sailing on, and now it would seem like the time had finally come. "Are you coming with us?"

Sugar nodded enthusiastically, "The whole family's going!"

"Really? That's so exciting! I wonder where we're going?"

Shrugging Sugar hurriedly led her toward the lift, and down into the massive underground port.

The bustle of the underground port excited her immensely, as all sorts of toys skittered to and fro, carrying out all sorts of tasks. It was absolutely delightful, but the thing that excited her the most, was the figure of the large ship in the background. She knew it instantly, and mama had not been exaggerating, it was HUGE and oh so pink, and that figure head, oh that figure head, it was so perfect. It was no wonder mama knew exactly when it was his ship drew near, there was no denying the fact that that was her father's ship.

She almost broke into a run toward the ship, but a slimy hand grasped her firmly by the arm, holding her back.

"Hey, hey Dulci-chan, we wouldn't want you getting lost down here now."

Shuddering she offered the man, who had come up entirely too close to her face, a smile. "I'm sorry Uncle Trebol." She said, attempting to pull her arm away so she could create some distance between them.

"Behehehehe, no worries child."

The ship was even more magnificent up close, probably the most amazing thing she had ever seen in her life, next to her father of course. Such a beautiful flamingo.

"Fuffuffuffuffu, is she everything you dreamed she would be, sweetheart?" His voice called down to her as she was speeding her way up the impossibly long gangplank.

Her face was beaming with joy as she leapt onto the deck, her eyes drinking in the marvelous ship. "She's beautiful," the girl breathed, coming up next to him.

"Fuffuffuffuffu, I'm glad you think so. Now that everyone's here, we can set sail."

"Where are we going?"

He smiled down at her, placing a hand on her head as his grin grew wider. "Just a winter island not terribly far from here, there's someone there who's dying to see us."

She trembled with excitement from that tone in his voice, and she was sure that everyone else on deck noticed it too. Surely, this was going to be an interesting trip.

Being out on sea was definitely more exhilarating this time around, and she could not get enough of it. The salty sea air, the brisk wind blowing through her hair, being surrounded by endless nothingness, there was such mystery to the sea, so much adventure just waiting to happen. Oh how could mama possibly turn down the chance of being a pirate, of sailing these wildly unpredictable seas, safe and secure, tucked under the wing of a giant flamingo.

She was absolutely beyond herself, and as the ship drew closer to their destination, she was almost sad that they would be on dry land again. The cold winter air of the island reminded her of home, of a home which no longer existed, and of a warmth which always seemed to seep into her through the arms of her mother.

When they finally docked, she shuddered at the sight of the ship docked next to them. There was something about that ship that gave her a sense of unease, what it was she was not sure, but she did not like it. Swallowing her apprehensions she drew closer to her father, and as they stepped foot onto that island, a sadistic grin crossed his face.

His glasses glinted in the light as he threw his head back and laughed, "I invite you all to rampage." He said, eliciting a grin from almost all of the family members, "The little miss and I have some unfinished business to tie up."

She gave him a curious look, to which he responded with a grin, gesturing for her to follow. So she followed him, as they made their way across the port town to a nondescript house. Kicking open the door he entered with flair, alarming the two people inside the house, as she apprehensively followed after him.

"WHO THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU-" The man in the room started screaming before he noticed the distinct figure of Donquixote Doflamingo standing just inside the door. "Oh shit."

The smirk which spread across Doflamingo's face was priceless as those last two words escaped the man's mouth. "Now is that anyway to greet a guest?" He asked, his voice dripping with feigned sweetness, as he crossed the room and plopped himself down on to the couch, draping an arm around the petrified woman seated there.

That voice, Dulcinea knew that voice, and as her eyes trailed over to the owner of that voice she found herself frozen in a place by a blinding rage. It was him, the monster who had so ruthlessly attacked her mother, the monster responsible for her demise. She felt her hand clench around the handle of the dagger her father had insisted she carry as her eyes flicked between the sadistic smile on her father's face to the terrified look on that monster.

"To...to… what do I owe the pleasure?" The man stammered, shaking in fear as he stared at the large man, who currently had his arm around his equally terrified wife.

"Righting a wrong."

"I… I… don't understand… we've never done anything to wrong you, Joker."

"Fuffuffuffuffu," He laughed, "is that right? I'm sure the little darling over there would beg to differ, am I right, sweetheart?" He asked, gesturing his head toward the door.

Slowly the man turned to face the girl standing over at the door, a vehemence painted on her beautifully innocent face. He did not have to ask to know who she was, even though he had reacted in a drunken stupor, there was no forgetting the face of that woman. He had not meant to react the way he did, but when he saw that necklace hanging around her neck, something inside him snapped. As the previous owner, the man sitting in front of him now, had once burned his village to the ground, subsequently destroying everything he once held dear and pushed him into a life of piracy.

"I'm… I'm sorry…" He managed to stammer, trembling from that look in her eye.

"I'm sorry?" She repeated through gritted teeth. "I'M SORRY!?"

"Fuffuffuffuffuffu, looks like the little darling does not accept your apology."

"I'M SORRY DOES NOT BRING BACK MY MOTHER!" She spat as she drew the dagger and descended upon him. Her body instinctively going into autopilot, and all those hours training with Diamante, Pica, Gladius, and Lao G, unveiled themselves as Doflamingo watched gleefully from the couch. She moved with deadly precision as the blade embedded itself into the man's chest. A spark of pleasure trailed from her fingers, and coursed through her body as the dagger slid into his flesh, and she pulled it out just to sink it in again, and again, and again.

She was lost in an adrenaline filled daze, and as she slowly came down from her high she suddenly became acutely aware of how drenched she was, in both her own sweat and his blood. Pulling away from him she shrugged off the heavy winter jacket and wiped the blade on it before sheathing it. As her head cleared she could hear the distinct sound of her father's laugh, ringing out through the air, under the shrill shrieks of the woman next to him.

"Come here, sweetheart," She heard him say as she was gently pulled into his lap by his invisible strings, his arm coming down around her waist, holding her in place. "We don't want to kill him just yet, the show's about the begin."

Those were not the words she wanted to hear, she wanted to drain that man of his life, bathe in his blood, as she avenged the death of her mother. "Papa, let me go." She said, struggling against him. "I'm not done."

"Oh, but it's my turn sweetheart." He said, his tone sending a shiver of delight down her spine as she relaxed into him.

Lifting his arm off the woman, he flicked his fingers and she lurched forward, toward the bloodied man on the floor. Another flick of his hand and the man stood before his wife, his hand reaching for the cutlass he had not been able to unsheathe when Dulcinea had descended upon him.

The man's eyes opened wide in horror as his body betrayed him, "No… Joker… please… no…" He stammered as he drew his sword and slowly approached his wife.

Doflamingo only laughed harder, "Did you really think I would forgive anyone, for taking from me what was mine?"

"P… P… Please Joker… I… She…" The man was incapable of forming a cohesive thought, and with a flick of his hand, Doflamingo sent him slamming into his wife, the blade impaling her torso as a diabolical laugh tore through the room.

Dulcinea found the show rather entertaining, sure the woman was innocent and it bothered her a little, but watching this man writher in pain, his mind tethering on the brink of insanity filled her with immeasurable glee. She almost did not care whether or not he died at this point, his spirit was essentially broken, his light snuffed out as her mother's once was. Entranced, she watched her father maneuver his strings, his human puppets gracefully dancing to his whim, as that monster continually stabbed his wife half a dozen times until the only thing holding her upright were those invisible strings trailing from his fingers.


	6. Family Outing

"Papa, why don't you ever send me out on missions, like all the others?" She asked one night, as they sat on the balcony, looking up at the stars.

"Because."

She pouted. ' _Because_ ' was not a valid response, at least not an informative one. How many years has it been since the incident with _that man_? Five years have already passed since she first came into this life, and she was definitely not that little girl she was all those years ago. She was much stronger, faster, and she knew she could keep up with the rest of them. "Am I not good enough?"

"No, sweetheart, you're perfect." His arms tightened around her, and without the need of any additional words, she understood.

Letting out a sigh, she decided to drop the issue, besides going on a mission was not even the real issue here, she was just tired of being stuck in the palace, on this island. Sure from time to time she would be allowed to go into town, or she would sneak out and wander until she eventually got caught, but she wanted more. She wanted to explore the world, see what else was out there, but she also knew, from the way he tightened his grip on her, that he would never relent, that this was the cage her mother had been wary of.

It was okay with her though, she had decided long ago that she prefered this particular cage of his over freedom any day. If being in his cage meant that she could spend endless days and nights basking in the light that was him, she was more than willing to sit pretty. Being by his side meant more to her than anything the world could possible offer, even freedom, but still it would be nice to be able to be out at sea again.

"Can we go sailing again?"

He let out a laugh, "Is that what this is all about?" He asked, amusement lacing his words.

She smiled and nodded, winding her fingers in between his.

"Well then sweetheart, where is it you would like to go?"

"Hmm," She mused, leaning back into him she pondered the answer to that question. There were so many places she would like to go visit, the world was filled with such excitement and wonder. For starters, she had never been to the East Blue, she heard there was an amazing restaurant out on the sea there, but then again they live in Dressrosa, and their country was world renowned for their food. Visiting the North Blue again would be nice, but it is so cold there, and she has had enough of the cold, all her memories of the cold were all tainted now. Perhaps Fisherman Island, it would be fun to go under the sea and see real live mermaids… "Oh, I know! Sabaody Archipelago! Baby5 mentioned that there was a huge amusement park there!"

"Fuffuffuffuffu, is that right? I suppose a family outing is overdue." Picking her up, he stood and drew her against his chest as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I'll see what I can do."

She smiled and let out a yawn as she rested her head on his shoulder, "Maybe Uncle Vergo could meet up with us too."

"Perhaps, it has been a while since we last saw him."

Her hands clutched the side of the ship, knuckles white, as they swiftly approached the archipelago, excitement bubbling in her chest. Her two best friends, Dellinger and Sugar, stood on either side of her, equally as excited. Turning her head to look behind her, she caught the eye of her father and flashed him the brightest smile she could muster, the smile he gave her in return filled her stomach with butterflies and made her heart flutter. After all these years, every time he gave her that smile she could not help but wonder again, _how in the world did mama resist this man for so long_?

There was an air of excitement surrounding her as they disembarked the ship. Sabaody Archipelago was even more magnificent than the books had described it, the mangroves were simply breathtaking. "This is amazing!"

"We'll see you guys later, dinner at grove 43, right?" Baby5 said as she, Violet, and Monet, took off toward the shopping district, Buffalo following close behind her.

"Well then, we'll be off too." Jora said, patting Dellinger on the head, "You take care of the girls okay?"

"Wait, I thought we were all going to go the amusement park, family outing and all." Dulcinea said with a slight pout.

"Behehehehehe, hey, hey Dulci-chan, we adults have other business to attend to here, we'll all meet up for dinner."

She frowned as Trebol came up entirely too close to her, "Wait _all_ of you?"

"Back off," She heard her father say to Trebol as he came up next to her, his hand coming down on gently on her shoulder. "Now there's no need for that frown, sweetheart. I'll meet up with you once we're done in Grove One, okay? You go have fun and save the ferris wheel for me."

Looking up at him she narrowed her eyes, her frown intensifying. Figures that he would have work to do, he _always_ had work to do, even so far from home he would not be able to escape his work. "Promise?" She asked.

He flashed her another one of those smiles which had the power to make her melt into a puddle and forget what it was she was upset about. "Promise. Stay close to Sugar and Dellinger."

She could not say that she was not disappointed that he would not be joining them, but as soon as the three friends entered the massive amusement park she quickly forgot about her disappointment. The park was absolutely thrilling, and before they knew it they had ridden every ride at least twice, the roller coaster close to a dozen times and the sun was already starting to dip in the sky.

Settling down onto a bench by the ice cream cart the three friends took a moment to relax, while they slowly ate their frozen treats.

"There sure are a lot of pirates here." Dulcinea said, picking out another face in the crowd. "That's the fifth over fifty million berrie head I've seen today."

Sugar nodded in agreement, "If we just take one down, that's more than all our allowances combined for five years."

"Let's do it."

"I'm not sure that's such a good idea, Dellinger. They must be pretty strong if they have such a high bounty."

Dellinger laughed, "Oh come on Dulci-chan, we can totally take them. Tell me you're not itching for a fight."

Dulcinea smiled sweetly at the half fishman. "I'm not itching for a fight." She replied mockingly, albeit honestly, her eyes flicking over toward the large wheel in the distance. What she was _itching_ for was to ride the ferris wheel.

"Well then fine, I'm sure Sugar and I can take one down, am I right Sugar?"

Licking her lips a devious smile crossed the girl's face. "I think I could use a new toy or two."

Outnumbered Dulcinea let out a sigh, "Fine." She conceded, considering she did make a promise to stay close to the two of them. "So how are we doing this, next bounty that comes along, or are we actually going to find someone we have a chance against?"

"Well obviously finding a suitable target would be the smarter choice, but I say let's just go in blind and have some fun."

"How did I know you were going to say that Dellinger."

He flashed her a toothy smile, "Because Dulci-chan, that's the only way to play."

So they settled back down onto the bench and continued to scan the crowd. It would seem that their luck was running low, as there was not a pirate in sight, and just as they were about to give up and call it a night, Sugar spotted the perfect target, and Dulcinea reluctantly followed after her friends as they stalked their way over.

Hanging back, Dulcinea watched as Dellinger launched himself at their target, head down and horns out. She cringes as he impacts the man, his horns piercing the unsuspecting target in the side. As he pulled himself off their target, Sugar had already come up next to him, grinning wickedly as she placed her hand on their target, subsequently turning him into a toy.

"Well that was easier than expected." Dulcinea said as she approached the two of them, just as Sugar finished making the contract with the toy.

"Tell me about it, that was almost not fun." Dellinger said, wiping down his horns. "You'd think they would at least put up more of a fight."

"Easiest sixty million berries ever." Sugar said, poking at the toy.

"What are you three up to?"

The three of them whipped around at the sound of that voice, a smile breaking out over Dulcinea's face as the other two exclaimed, "Vergo-san!"

Running over to him, Dulcinea wrapped her arms around his torso. "Uncle Vergo!" Of all the family members, with the exception of her father, her Uncle Vergo was her favorite, unfortunately he was also the one who was always away the longest.

A small smile crossed the man's face as he returned her hug. "Doffy asked me to check on you, as you three are late for dinner."

"Oh crap, we forgot all about dinner." Dellinger admitted scratching the back of his neck.

"Wait, it's dinner time already!?" Dulcinea pouted, releasing him and crossing her arms over her chest. "So much for a promise."

Vergo chuckled lightly and ruffled her hair. "He probably just got caught up with his work. Come on, we'll take my waver."

"But you don't have a waver do you, Uncle Vergo?" She asked with a laugh.

"That's right. I don't have a waver."

As they entered the restaurant, she shot her father a dirty look and proceeded to take the seat furthest away from him, knowing it would upset him.

"Come now sweetheart, don't be like that." He said, a slight frown tugging at the corner of his lips.

Putting on the sweetest smile she could conjure, she leaned over the table to catch his eye. "Be like what, papa?" She asked, her voice dripping with feigned innocence.

"Come here." He demanded, sending a shiver down her spine.

Begrudgingly she got up and stalked her way over to the seat next to him, a scowl settling on her face as she plopped herself down, deliberately avoiding his gaze.

"Stop it."

She turned her head to face him, a glare set in her eyes, the fakest smile she could muster, plastered on her lips. "Stop what, _papa_ , I'm not doing anything."

He clicked his tongue in disapproval of her tone. "Stop making that face."

"No, I'm still mad at you." She replied defiantly, a scowl settling back on to her lips as she crossed her arms and sank back into the chair, glaring at the food in front of her.

He let out a small sigh, annoyed by that look of contempt on her face. "Look, I'm sorry sweetheart, I got caught up with work, we'll go ride the ferris wheel right after dinner, okay?"

She snapped her head back toward him, the glower on her face intensifying. "Liar, I can smell the whores on you from here."

"Behehehehe," Trebol wheezed from his other side, clutching his side in laughter. "Hey, hey Doffy, she got you there."

"Shut up." He snapped, eliciting laughs from both Pica and Diamante, as Trebol attempted to catch his breath, the laughter raking through his body.

Dulcinea attempted to keep her scowl in place as the cacophony of her Uncles' distinctive laughs tore through the restaurant, an indignant frown breaking out across her father's face. A part of her wanted to mockingly thank Trebol for confirming her suspicions, but she decided to keep her mouth shut. That frown on her father's face told her he was upset, pushing him further would probably not be a wise choice, so instead she chose to passively annoy him by keeping that scowl in place. It was getting harder to do so though, and although she was still angry, the sounds of their laughter was making it hard for her not to smile, so in a feeble attempt at maintaining her mask, she shoved her face full of food. Honestly, she was not even sure why she was surprised by his antics, perhaps it was because she had always assumed that she was more important to him than some nameless whores.

He watched silently as she processed her emotions, that anger dissipating into melancholy, and he found that he liked this expression of hers even less. He really did have work to take care of, and sure, at some point he had taken a little break and released some stress, but it was not like he had actually forgotten his promise to meet up with her. He sighed again, she had every right to be upset with him, and he hated it when she managed to make him feel like this, inadequate.

"Come here." He said again, gentler this time, much like the first time they met.

Turning toward him her body responded instinctively to that tone, and she found herself getting up from her seat and pulling herself onto his lap. She gave him a small smile as her right arm snaked around his back and she tucked herself into the crook of his arm. "I'm sorry, papa." She whispered softly into his chest.

"Fuffuffuffu, no I"m sorry, sweetheart." He said with a small laugh as he drew his arm around her, pulling her closer. "But, you should already know that you're the most important person in the world to me. I would never chose some worthless whore over you."

Giving him a nod she smiled and rested her head against him. "I know, but you do still smell like whores." She said playfully, earning a chuckle from him.

After dinner, the whole family decided that they would all join them for a trip back to the amusement park, and as they neared the park she could see why. The amusement park was absolutely dazzling at night, all the rides lit up in brilliant multicolored lights, sparkling against the dark night sky, filling the night air with magic.

She was beyond herself as the situated themselves into that small box, something about being in an enclosed space, hanging so high above the earth, with the one person she loved more than life itself, made her feel like she was in heaven. The twinkling lights of the park below her made her heart soar, and just when she did not think it could possibly get any better, he came up behind her, wrapping his arms around her as the box paused at the top of the wheel and the sky exploded in a brilliant flash of light.

"Oh papa," She breathed as the fireworks exploded around them, the loud booms and his proximity, causing her heart to leap with joy. "I love you."

She could once again feel his arms tighten around her, his breath ghosting her ear as he whispered back, "I love you too, sweetheart, more than you'll ever know."


	7. Running Free

"Freedom!" She yelled to the sky as she ran along the side streets of Acacia.

How long had it been since she last ran free like this? A month? Probably a little longer, it annoyed her that the leash he kept around her neck was starting to grow shorter and shorter. The past year and a half had been particularly bad, but then again, admittedly that was probably her fault. Who could have guessed that he would have reacted so violently to the discovery of her kissing a boy. _Baby5._ She chuckled at the thought. Still, fourteen in her mind was old enough to kiss a boy.

Ever since then she was no longer allowed out without an escort, and the escort of choice was usually either the trigger happy Gladius or the overprotective Dellinger. It was so frustrating, not that she did not love them to pieces, and their company was quite enjoyable, but how was she supposed to meet anyone when she was constantly surrounded by psychopaths. Lovable psychopaths, but psychopaths none the less.

All she wanted was to have a little fun, meet some new people, kiss a boy or two or three, or how many whores did papa have last night? Who or how many girls her father slept really should not bother her as much as it did, quite frankly, it was really none of her business, but it did bother her, dear lord it bothered her. She was old enough now to understand what exactly it was these women did with her father, hell she was old enough to understand what was going on years ago, but it was not until recently did the idea really sink in. It was bad, and she needed all the brain bleach in the world after walking in on _that_ , but a part of her was also so incredibly angry, and dare she admit, jealous. It was an irrational jealousy, that much she knew, but she hated those women, hated them with a passion, not one of them was worthy of his touch.

She shook her head violently, reaching for that proverbial brain bleach again. She was not going to allow the thought of some whores ruin her short lived freedom. Any moment now they, no, _he_ would realize she was gone and Violet would be called in to find her. She had two hours, maybe three, it was all contingent on how much work he had to do, though she was sure that _work_ was a loose term, how long the colosseum battle was going to last, and how long Violet could distract Gladius for.

Weaving her way down to the port she found herself smiling, as the sight of two, maybe, three pirate ships caught her eye. Pirates, she loved pirates. They were fun, but best of all they were transient. She disliked hooking up with the locals, she knew exactly what would happen if she were to mess around with the locals, the dozen or so toys in her room were a testament to that.

"Dulcinea?"

Nervously she turned toward the voice behind her, very few people actually knew who she was outside of the family, and she would be devastated if she were caught already. She sighed in relief when she realized it was just one of the young dockhands she had met a couple of months ago. "Oh, hi Carlos!" She exclaimed, giving the boy a wave.

"Hey, it really is you. It's been awhile, how have you been."

"Good, good, busy. You know, the usual." _Locked in a cage_. She beamed brightly at him, gesturing toward the ships in the distance. "So who are the new pirates in town? Anyone interesting?"

He frowned slightly at her mention of pirates. He was hoping to have some time alone with her, but he was aware that once she gets pirates into her head nothing else will do. "I'm not sure, I have a break coming up soon if you want to hang around, we can go grab lunch or something."

"Oh right, you're working, well, sure if I'm still around when you're done let's do that."

"Great, I'll be back in thirty minutes or so, I just need to finish loading this one ship."

She flashed him another smile as he rushed off to finish up his tasks, her eyes scanning the busy port for anyone interesting. She did not recognize the jolly rogers on the three pirate ships docked, and figured that the more interesting ships were probably down in the secret port, a place she refused to go to, considering it was Uncle Trebol's domain.

Perching herself onto a nearby barrel she continued to watch the crowd, every now and again her eyes would follow someone, but there was nobody interesting enough to actually make her move. Then someone caught her attention, and she recognized him immediately. He was more beautiful in the living flesh than he was in his wanted poster, and he was surprisingly alone. She wanted him, he was perfect, well as close to perfect as she could get at the moment, nobody was _perfect_ , okay maybe one person was perfect, but he was also unattainable. So she followed him with her eyes, he was tall, not as tall as she liked them, but tall enough, his dark hair tucked under a wide brimmed hat, adorable freckles littered across his face. He smiled at her and gave her a wink as he passed by, her heartbeat increasing and she felt inclined to move. Jumping off the barrel she was about to follow after him when a strong hand came down and gripped her by the arm.

"Hey, Dulcinea, don't do it. Do you even know who that is?"

Letting out a scoff she pulled her arm out of his hand, "Yes, Carlos, I know who that is. Who in the world would not know who that is?" Her eyes flicked back over to his receding figure, that large tattoo on his back disappearing into a tavern. "So, are you done with your work?"

"Yea, where would you like to go?"

She flashed him a playful smile, her eyes trailing toward the tavern. "Let's go get a drink."

"No, you're still under aged..." He replied. "Besides, you just want to chase after that pirate."

"And what if I do? You think you can stop me?" She replied cheekily, licking her lips. "He is quite delicious."

"You have the strangest taste in men."

She chuckled, "You're just jealous." She teased. "But what can I say, I'm attracted to dangerously powerful men."

He shook his head, a light blush dusting his cheeks, he was jealous alright, but he also very aware that a girl like her was completely out of his league. "Dangerously powerful eh? Makes one wonder what your ideal man is like?"

"My ideal man?" She asked with a chuckle, hooking her arm into his, as she led him toward a random restaurant. "That's easy, p-King Doflamingo."

He almost tripped and fell over, "Really? King Doflamingo? I mean sure, he's our great liberator and brought peace and prosperity to our country, but isn't he old enough you be your father?"

Laughter tore through her due to his last words, _yes, yes he was old enough to be my father_ , and she had to stop walking so she could breathe. "I suppose he is." She said gasping for air as she wiped the tears from her eyes, still laughing. "Oh but he's so beautiful, like the sun."

"Can't compete with that." He mumbled to himself softly, it was quite surprising though. That was definitely not the response he was expecting. How was anybody supposed to compete with someone like that.

She giggled again as she pulled him into the restaurant, "Don't be like that." She said taking a seat across from him, smiling brightly at him. "P-King Doflamingo's just my ideal man, it doesn't mean I'm not open to others. So tell me, Carlos, what's your ideal woman like?"

Grinning she watched as he blushed and avoided her gaze, did he really think she would not notice? Besides, she had learned from Violet that all men were just after one thing, this boy was no different. She had wanted to save him from a fate worse than death, he should have just let her go after that pirate. All she wanted was to have a little fun, and now she was running out of time without a target in sight. Perhaps he would just have to do, although it pained her to know what would happen if anyone ever found out.

Smirking she leaned over the table, grabbed him roughly by the collar and pulled him into a kiss. It was not the best kiss she had ever had, but it also was not the worst. It was sort of sloppy and he tasted salty and sweet, like a hard day's worth of work, and he was rough and smooth in all the right places. Breaking apart she settled back down into her chair, a coy smirk plastered on her face as he attempted to get his bearings.

"What… what… was that all about?"

"Well, you denied me a pirate, so I had to improvise."

"Oh? Perhaps I should deny you pirates more often." He said, gaining confidence.

She laughed, such a funny boy, thinking he was worth more than he is. It always amused her how easily boys could be manipulated, it was no wonder she had yet to meet anyone who could even remotely hold a candle to papa. Just a kiss and this boy thinks he has what it takes to be the King of Dressrosa.

"Dulcinea?"

"Oh shit." She breathed that smile falling from her face as she froze, reluctant to turn toward that voice. What in heaven's name was he doing here.

Carlos gave her a curious look as that voice filtered over to them again.

"Dulcinea." He called again.

Swallowing hard she tried to think fast, she did not want to go back yet, not like this, it was too soon. It would have been a different story if _he_ had found her, there was no resisting _him_ , besides it would mean he was done with his work. Turning toward the owner of the voice she put on her sweetest smile, "Uncle Vergo! What a pleasant surprise!" She exclaimed.

She could feel him narrowing his eyes at her under those shades of his as he slowly approached the table, his shoes making a distinct clicking sound against marble floors. "I could say the same to you my dear. Does your father know you're here, with…?" He inclined his head toward the boy sitting across from her.

Carlos tried to sit tall, resisting the urge to crumble under the piercing gaze of the Marine Vice Admiral. _Holy shit her uncle is a Marine Vice Admiral. Who is this girl._

Giving him a sheepish smile she looked up at him, suppressing a giggle at the piece of taiyaki stuck to his face, "Please don't tell papa, it's not what it looks like… Carlos is just a friend… we're just having some lunch, I was going to head back right afterwards, just give me an hour, please?" She begged, giving him the most ardent puppy dogs eyes she could manage.

Vergo chuckled, this child, how could he possibly resist her. "An hour? I suppose you are in luck, as I have a meeting with your father, which should take approximately an hour. I think I can forget this little encounter, but…" Glancing toward the boy he hardened his face. "Since you seem to be so friendly with our Dulcinea-chan, why don't you come over for dinner tonight."

A flash of horror passed across her face as those words came out of his mouth, she was not sure that an hour of freedom was worth the price of subjecting Carlos to dinner with the family. "I…" She started.

"It would be an honor to have dinner with Dulcinea's family tonight." The boy said mustering as much confidence as he could, cutting off her response.

"Very well, it's settled then. Come by the palace at six." A grin flashed across Vergo's face as gave her a gentle pat on the head. "I can only guarantee you one hour, how long after that before he notices is beyond my control."

As he exited the restaurant, Dulcinea let out the breath she was not even aware she had been holding. "Carlos!" She cried out when Vergo was out of sight, "Why did you agree to that?!"

"Huh? What do you mean? It's just a dinner."

She let out an exasperated sigh. "No, it's not just a dinner, you don't understand… my family's a little... " _Terrifying_. "... eccentric."

"I'm sure it will be fine." He said, laughing it off with a smile.

Shaking her head she slumped back into her chair. "No, you really don't understand."

"You're worrying too much."

"No, I'm not. I know my family, you don't." Sitting up she looked him in the eye. "Listen carefully. All my friends are heathens, take it slow. Wait for them to ask you who you know. Please don't make any sudden moves, you don't know the half of the abuse. You'll never know the psychopath sitting next to you, you'll never know the freakshow sitting next to you, you'll have some weird people sitting next to you… you'll think 'how did I get here, sitting next to you?' But after all I've said, please don't forget, we don't deal with outsiders very well. They say newcomers have a certain smell. They have trust issues, not to mention, they say they can smell your intentions…"

He chuckled, eliciting a glare from her. "Don't you think that's a little much? Your family can't be that bad."

Poking at the food on the table she let out another sigh. "Oh honey, you don't know the half of it."


	8. Dinner

**_a/n: there's some slight cursing in this chapter... :P Cheeky teenagers._**

"Wait, so you live in the palace?" He asked as they left the restaurant, finally realizing what it was her uncle had said to him.

She gave him a weak smile, "Yeah, it's a long story, you'll see at dinner."

Stopping abruptly a thought crossed his mind. "So wait, you've _actually_ been in the presence of the King?"

She let out a laugh, "Hahahaha, yes. Why? Jealous?"

"Y-No, I mean, yes… but then again, who wouldn't be jealous of the King?"

"You do have a point there my friend, who wouldn't be jealous of the King?" She replied with a faraway look in her eye, "He's so tall and handsome as hell, so dangerously powerful but carries it so well, he's got the devil's charisma and can bring you to your knees with just a smile…" Smiling to herself, she could not help but wonder if it was time to go home yet, "...wait what were we talking about again?"

"Wow okay, um, not what I meant..." He stammered, "I just meant that you know, he is rich and powerful and could get any woman he wanted…" He said tensely, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Ha, right that. I suppose there's that too." She said bitterly, a flash of anger passing through her eyes, _stupid whores_. "Oh that reminds me, please do take this dinner seriously." She said a serious expression falling on her face. "I'm not exaggerating, my family's a little… what's the word… intimidating."

"Uh yeah, that much I've already figured, I mean your uncle's a freaking Marine Vice Admiral for crying out loud."

She smiled weakly at him, _yea, and my father's the freaking King of Dressrosa_. "Yes, but that's not the half of it. Oh, and remember, arrive exactly at six, you _could_ come early, but I don't recommend it, the less time you spend around those people the better, and most definitely DO NOT come late, tardiness is not tolerated and it would almost guarantee that papa will be in a foul mood. Although, I have an inkling papa will be in a foul mood regardless…" She shuddered at the thought.

He gave her a nervous smile, "Okay, so be at the palace at six, got it. Do I knock or something?"

"No, there's no need. Just wait by the lift, someone will come get you…" She replied, frowning as she felt the tug of an invisible string on her wrist. "... I have to go. See you at six, and remember, don't be late."

He shifted nervously as he stared up the King's Plateau, unsure of what it was he was supposed to do, but before he could figure it out, the tall figure of Vice Admiral Vergo stepped out in front of him, gesturing for him to follow. Apprehensively Carlos followed the Vice Admiral into the lift, feeling small and insignificant standing next to the intimidating man. The ride was short, but silent, and felt like it lasted forever, but before he knew it, he was ushered into a sitting room, full of the most terrifying people he had ever laid eyes on.

The King was lounging casually on a couch, three women surrounding him, while Dulcinea sat in an arm chair off to his right, glaring daggers at them from behind the book she was holding. He shuddered at the look of contempt on her face, it was fierce enough to make him cringe, and yet it was directed at the King. There were other members of the Royal family littered around the room too, a few he recognized from the Colosseum, like the Hero of the Colosseum, Diamante, and the young fighter, Dellinger who was perched on the arm of the chair she was sitting on. There were a few people he did not recognize, and he was certainly surprised to see the daughter of the traitor king there.

"Fuffuffuffu, sweetheart, stop making that face."

Putting down the book she had been pretending to read, she fixed her glare directly at him. "Sure, if you release me so I can punch you in the fucking face." She retorted, the look of disgust still plastered on her face.

He threw his head back and laughed again. "Now sweetheart, is that anyway to talk to me?"

Rolling her eyes at him she let out a scoff, " _Please_ , release me so I can punch you in the fucking face, _your majesty_."

"Fuffuffuffu, aren't we cheeky today."

"And aren't you deplorable today." She retorted, picking up her book again, resuming her previous task of passively glaring at the whores hanging off of him. "Those whores are beneath you." She seethed.

"Fuffuffuffuffu, they're on top of me sometimes too." He quipped with a laugh, eliciting an even more intense glare from her.

"You disgust me."

"Oh look, the little girl is jealous she didn't get picked." The new whore sitting on his lap mocked, causing Violet to drop the tea cup she had been holding as a deathly silence filled the room.

In an instant the girl was lifted off his lap and into the air, clawing at her neck as an invisible thread tightened around her throat. "Nobody asked you for your opinion. Know your place, _whore_ , how dare you put her at the same level as you." He growled, a scowl settling on his face as that vein between his brows throbbed, anger coursing through him.

Dulcinea scoffed, a sinfully sadistic smile crossing her lips. New whores who did not know their place were always the most amusing and made for a great show whenever they inevitably overstepped their bounds. Unfortunately she was still, well tied up, and could not move, so that she could personally put that bitch in her place.

Carlos watched in horror as the scene unfolded before him, never in a million years would he ever imagine that _anyone_ would have had the gall to speak to King Doflamingo the way she did. He could not quite figure out how she fit into the Royal Family, but it was clear to him that she was definitely a member, especially considering her familiarity with the King. Although, what was honestly more surprising than her words, was his reaction to her, and the fact that the only time he actually showed anger was when one of his whores insulted her. She was right, her family was quite terrifying, and as he watched the girl fight for air he could not quite decide if he felt bad for her or not, even he could tell she clearly spoke out of line.

"Hey, hey Doffy, don't kill her so quickly, she needs to be punished for disrespecting our sweet little Dulci-chan."

"Yes, please young master, let us teach her a lesson first." Dellinger said, coming to a stand as red flashed in his eyes.

From across the room, Vergo cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention to the door, and the new presence in the room. Suddenly every pair of eyes in the room fell upon boy next to him, and the whore fell to the ground with a heavy thud, gasping for air as she rubbed at the mark around her throat. "I do believe it's time for dinner."

"Fuffuffuffuffu, and I do believe you're right." Doflamingo said, coming to a stand as he threw the remaining whores off of him. "Come sweetheart, introduce me to your _friend_."

The expression on her face changed from utter contempt to fearfully anxious as she slowly stood up putting the book down onto the chair before making her way over to them.

"Papa," She said softly, "This is my friend Carlos. Carlos," she said, noting the shock on his face and she offered him a timid smile, "this is my father, King Doflamingo."

Doflamingo tossed his head back in laughter as the boy's eyes opened wide in shock. "And tell me sweetheart, how is it that you know each other?"

"I met him at the docks a couple of months ago. He's just a friend I hunted pirates with."

Raising an eyebrow the smile on his face grew sinister, as they settled down around the dining room table. "Hunted pirates, eh? So tell me, which pirate did you catch today?"

"Catch? None."

"So what is it that the two of you did today, if you failed to catch any pirates."

She sighed, knowing Vergo probably saw more than just them having lunch, "We had lunch and talked…" and then a thought crossed her mind, offering her glimmer of hope for the poor boy. "Although, the reason we didn't catch any pirates today was because he stopped me from pursuing Portgas D. Ace."

"Fuffuffuffuffu, is that right?" He said, turning his attention to the boy.

Carlos swallowed hard, nodding in response. "Y-y-yes your Majesty." He stammered, shrinking under the pressure of the King's stare.

A contemplative smile crossed Doflamingo's lips as he continued to eat his dinner, a silence falling over the room. Every now and then Dulcinea would offer Carlos an apologetic smile before returning to her food, and Carlos fearfully remained silent.

She had been right, and as the night drew on he found himself wondering what in the world he was doing there, sitting next to them. This was definitely more than he had bargained for when he first set eyes on her, although now it made sense to him as to why he rarely saw her around town.

When the last of the plates were cleared, Dulcinea let out a breath of relief as dinner went far smoother than she had expected it to, her Ace comment had really relieved the tension and she was slightly hopeful for Carlos' future. "May I be excused?" She asked, glancing over at her father.

"Depends." He replied with a smirk.

She narrowed her eyes at him, a sadistic smirk twisting onto her lips. "I have a whore to disembowel." She deadpanned, getting up from her chair before he even responded, knowing it was an acceptable answer.

The grin he gave her in return sent shivers down her spine. "Have fun." He said with a laugh, "By the way, meet me in the Hall of Suits afterwards, I have something for you sweetheart."

She nodded before exiting the room, her fingers twitching against the dagger on her hip. Throwing open the doors to the drawing room she smiled dangerously at the woman sprawled on the floor.

The woman lifted her head slightly as she entered the room, attempting to stammer an apology. "I-I-I'm sorry… I didn't realize you were a member of the family."

Dulcinea slowly walked over to her, the heel of her shoe coming down on the woman's face and she bent over her. "Oh I'm not _just_ a member of the family." She drew slightly closer to the woman. "I'll let you in on a little known secret, one only the family knows… I'm his biological daughter."

She laughed at the look of horror which passed over the whore's face. "You should have just kept your dirty mouth of yours shut, _whore_." She sneered, lifting her foot off the woman's head. "I'm surprised the other whores didn't warn you not to speak to when you first arrived, then again, I think they _wanted_ something like this to happen… less competition or something."

"I-I-I'm sorry." The woman sobbed, terrified for her life.

"Oh no, there's absolutely no need to apologize to me." She said with an evil smile, "You did me a favor."

"A-a favor?"

Dropping down to a squat she lifted the woman's head by her hair. "Yes, a favor. You see, papa and I have an understanding. I ignore his debauchery and leave his whores alone, _unless_ they overstep their bounds."

The woman's eyes opened wide in fear as Dulcinea unsheathed her dagger.

"When that happens, I in turn get to play with his whores." Yanking the woman's hair she pulled her up to a sitting position, lightly running the dagger along the woman's throat, tracing the red line his strings left behind. "You should have known your place. A whore is just a whore, utterly replaceable, and papa would _always_ pick me over any whore."

The woman let out a shriek as the dagger came down into the middle of her chest, hitting her sternum before being dragged down the length of her torso, splitting her open.

Dulcinea licked her lips at the sight, her tongue lightly flicking over the blood on the dagger. "Of all the people in this world, the ones I hate the most, are papa's filthy whores."

By the time she was done with the woman, she almost felt bad for the poor soul who had to clean up the room. She had tried to contain the mess to one area, but unfortunately blood splatters, although she was getting neater, as her clothes were still untainted. Cleaning off her dagger she sheathed it again and exited the room, slowly making her way down to the Hall of Suits, praying that what he had for her was not a new toy.

Upon entering the first thing she noticed was that the four seats were filled, which was surprising as he rarely called for her with all of her uncles present.

"Uhahahahaha, our little Dulci-chan must have been pretty angry, that took longer than usual." Diamante laughed as she entered the room.

She gave him a devious smile as she paused by him, "Let's just say, she held out much longer than I expected… that or I'm just getting better at this."

He gave a her a pat on the back, "I would say you're getting better."

"It must be because I have you for a teacher." She said with a grin.

"Uhahahaha, I don't know what you're talking about, I didn't teach you that much."

"Oh Uncle Diamante, you know you're the best teacher a girl could ever ask for. I could never of possibly gotten as good as I am without you."

"No, no, you're just a gifted pupil."

"Oh but I insist, I've only come as far-"

"Stop it and come here." Doflamingo demanded with a smile.

"Tch," She scoffed making her way over to him, "You're no fun. Why's everyone here anyway?"

"They wanted to be present when you received your devil fruit."

"Wait, you're giving me a devil fruit?" She asked in surprise.

"Fuffuffuffuffu, of course I'm giving you a devil fruit, why do you say it like that?"

She shrugged. "I don't know, because how many years has it been? I know this isn't the first devil fruit you've come across." She said bitterly.

He laughed again, "Tell me sweetheart, how is it that you are angry with me?"

"Because, _papa_ ," She spat, crossing her arms. "You had me literally tied to a chair, FOR HOURS, while a bunch brainless whores pawed all over you." She scoffed, honestly, saying it out loud made her realize just how ridiculous of a reason it was to still be mad, _stupid whores, stupid papa_. Letting out a sigh she relaxed her stance. "What did you do to that boy anyway?"

"Fuffuffuffuffu, I considered letting him go," He said with a mischievous grin, "But here, add him to your collection."

She caught the stuffed, living bear he tossed her with a frown. "I hate you, papa."

"Fuffuffuffuffu, I love you too, sweetheart. Now come take this." He said, offering her the small wooden box. "It took me an extremely long time to find this."

Opening the box she stared down at the pear shaped, white devil fruit, the pattern of its distinct swirls told her it was a Zoan type fruit. "What is it?" She asked, apprehensive to actually eat it.

"That, sweetheart, is a surprise." He said as he plucked the fruit from its box, bringing it up to his face as he examined it. "You have no idea what I had to do to get this."

Smiling she decided to trust him, evidently it had taken him eight years to find that fruit, and knowing him, it must be something extremely rare. Lifting herself onto her tiptoes she grabbed his arm and brought the fruit down to her mouth, recoiling slightly from the taste.

With the fruit consumed, they all stared expectantly at her. "Behehehehe, hey, are you going to show us or not, Dulci-chan?"

"Maybe? I've never had devil fruit powers before… how do I activate it?"

"Fuffuffuffuffu, just think about wanting to fully transform, it reacts to your will."

"Okay." She was not sure what she was going to turn into, but decided to give it a go, willing her body to transform. Suddenly she felt her body shifting, a wave of power coming over her and before she knew it, when she shook her head, her mane waved around her like flames, she moved her scaley forelegs, cloven hooves making a clicking sound as she stomped on the ground.

Looking up at her father she could see herself reflected in his shades, a look of pride and admiration plastered on his face. Glancing toward her uncles, she could see her full, majestic form reflected in their glasses, as they stared in awe of her.

"Wait… I'm the legendary kirin?"


	9. Broken Heart

Letting out a sigh Dulcinea sat up, her hand coming up to finger the pendant around her neck. Ten years, and what a blissful, albeit slightly constrained, ten years it has been. For the most part she did not think about her mother that much anymore, but on this particular day, she found it hard not to. That raw, piercing pain she felt that day still lingered somewhere deep inside of her, and even though over the years it had dulled significantly, it always flared up again on the anniversary of her death.

Every now and again, on this particular day, she would suddenly remember what it felt like that night, watching as her mother writhed in pain, attempting to take a breath as her body betrayed her and she ultimately succumbed to the call of death. She would find herself lost in the mind of that terrified, grief-stricken little girl as those men hoisted her mother's corpse and released it to the sea, her sorrowful wails filling the night air as the ship continued to sail swiftly on, leaving her mother to dance in the sea alone. It was during those moments that she would realize that she did not even have a place to properly mourn her mother, her father's pendant being the only thing she had to remember her by.

Feeling the pressure of her body lift off of him, he turned his head slightly to the left, his smile waning as he caught the expression on her face. "What's wrong, sweetheart?"

"Hmm?" She mused, snapping out of her thoughts when she catches his eye, "Oh, nothing." She said offering him a sad smile as she settled back down against him, the pendant still dancing in her fingers.

Catching a glimpse of that pendant in her hand, he suddenly understood what it was that was bothering her. He probably should have noticed sooner, but this particular day usually slipped by them without either one of them openly acknowledging it. It had been ten years since that woman passed, countless more since he last had the pleasure of seeing her. Every now and again he would find himself longing for her, knowing she was gone, the years have done quite an abysmal job at filling that insatiable desire he had for her. It did not matter how many whores passed through his arms, not one of them did anything to remotely satisfy that burning desire within him. He let out a low growl, now she got him thinking about that woman, and honestly it was the last thing he wanted to be thinking about right now.

"Papa, would it be alright if I went out for a little bit?" She asked suddenly, her eyes fixated on the clouds in the sky.

"And where would it be that you'll be going?"

"The sea." Sitting up again she released the pendant from her hand and turned to face him. "I would like to send my regards to mama."

He nodded and placed his hand gently on her head, before coming to a stand. "Tell her I said hi."

Soaring through the sky she pranced from cloud to cloud, fully transformed into the magnificent Kirin. A gentle white flame surrounding her being as she made her way farther and farther from the island, stopping only when she was fully surrounded by the sea. Lying down she rested her head against the cloud, staring down into the wild blue sea.

"It's been ten years mama, I'm sorry it took me so long to come find you. You were right, papa is very much like the sun, and these past ten years have been the warmest, brightest, most wonderful ten years of my life, but I think I finally understand what it was you were afraid of. Papa's cage is something fierce, he doesn't let me do anything. Ten years in a cage, but you know what, sometimes I don't actually mind being in his cage. Sure a little freedom here and there would be nice, and it sure would be nice to go out on missions like the other family members or something, you know feel like I'm actually contributing... I often feel like a pretty doll on a shelf that he admires from time to time, but then that smile mama, you never told me how intoxicating that smile was, and whenever he gives me that smile that cage almost feels worth it.

I don't know how you did it mama, I don't know how you resisted him for so long, to know he was coming to town and to deliberately hide from him. I don't think I could ever do that, I don't think I would be able to breathe if I were not by his side, but I miss you too mama. I hate that I had to lose you to gain him, sometimes I wish we could have all existed together… I don't think I will ever be able to understand your reasons mama, I simply cannot fathom being apart from that man… he says hi by the way…" She let out a small laugh, it was not like her mother could actually hear her, the sea was just the sea, but still it lifted her spirits a little.

"Hey mama, are you happy? Do you have any regrets? Papa and I took care of _that man_ many years ago, I don't remember if I told you… not sure how you feel about that, but it made me happy. He got what he deserved. Do you regret never getting a chance to see papa again? He misses you, you know. Not that he would ever admit it, but I can tell, by the way he looks at me sometimes… and by the sheer number of whores who've crossed his path… ha… god I hate those whores… would you be mad if I told you I've killed a few? Probably, but it felt so good mama, so good.

I suppose I shouldn't be so hard on his whores, I mean the fact that they're so disposable means that none of them really means anything to him, that in all these years he had yet to find someone who captures his heart the way you did. In a way that makes me so happy mama… knowing that you were and still is the only person who could truly make him happy."

She sighed, lifting her head to the sky, "Oh mama. Do you think I'll ever find a man like papa out there somewhere? I mean, you know, if he ever lets me out of his cage," she added with a sad chuckle. "There has to be _someone_ out there for me right? It's not like I can just stay with papa forever… can I stay with papa forever? Would that be so wrong? Probably. Oh mama, what's wrong with me?"

Staring out at the sun it dawned upon her that the day was slowly slipping away, as the sun had already began its descent down into the western horizon. "Mama, I have to go. It's almost dinner time, Uncle Vergo's coming by tonight to visit. I'll come by more often, or as often as papa will allow me come, who knows how often that will be, but still, I'll try. I love you mama, maybe in another life we can all exist together."

Coming to a stand she shook out her mane before turning back toward home, a small smile crossing her face as a northern breeze blew around her, filling her with a nostalgia for that little island tucked so far away in the North Blue.

"Wait, what do you mean you're leaving already, Uncle Vergo? You just got here yesterday! I didn't even get a chance to show you the new dance Violet just taught me."

"The tanker leaves in an hour, I'll be back soon, I promise." He said coming to a stand.

She frowned, "I still don't understand why you have to go there. I mean, it's not like that guy's even doing anything."

"For now." He said giving her a pat on the shoulder as he passed by her chair. "We've let him run around for long enough, it's about time we paid him a little visit. Besides, it would appear that that Strawhat boy and his crew are there, along with some of my men."

"Can I come with?" She asked, grasping at straws.

"No." Both Vergo and Doflamingo said sternly at the same time, causing her to sink back into her chair, arms crossed with an ardent pout on her face.

Vergo chuckled at her antics, "You know, that face doesn't work that well anymore at your current age, it was much more effective ten years ago."

She scoffed, "Yeah, well the age appropriate, persuasive ' _expressions_ ' I have won't work on the two of you either, so I figured I'd give that one a shot." She retorted, chuckling at the perturbed expression they both gave her in return.

"C'mon Dulci-chan, there's no way Vergo-san's going to be back already, it's barely been a day. Besides, we're having a pool party downstairs." Sugar said, pulling her away from the balcony.

"Honestly, what is the point of a pool party, if none of us can swim?" She asked, plucking a grape from the bowl, "It's really just an excuse for him to surround himself with barely dressed woman."

Sugar laughed, "True, but if you're there then you can keep them at bay. I'm pretty sure most of them are terrified of you."

A smirk crossed her face, "I can't imagine why." She purred, her eyes glinting as she recalled what happened to the last whore who spoke out of line. "Are there any new whores today?"

"Hahahaha, you wish."

Exiting out onto the terrace she acknowledged the other family members there before she stalked her way over to him, climbing onto the couch he was lounging on, garnering a smile from him.

"Nice of you to join us, sweetheart." He said, pulling her closer, "Your uncle Vergo just called."

Leaning over him she reached for the receiver, "Hi Uncle Vergo, I'm still pissed you left."

 _"_ _I love you too, Dulcinea-chan, now put your father back on."_

Letting out a huff she dropped the receiver back into his hand and grabbed a handful of grapes before settling down against him. Listening intently to the conversation he was having, this Law fellow irritating her more and more. An explosion to their left drew her attention away from the Den Den Mushi. Sitting up she reached over him to grab the bottle of wine off the tray before leaping off the couch with Sugar, just as Baby-5 came up in front him. Taking a swig, she watched as Baby-5 took aim and blasted him in the face, a giggle escaping her as the explosion took out the surrounding area, subsequently ending the so called pool party. It was a shame though, that those two whores got out of the way fast enough to avoid being blown to smithereens.

As the dust settled around them, she frowned slightly as Baby-5 continued to rampage around them, inhibiting her ability to hear the conversation. "Hey, Gladius, could you do me a favor and stop her, I can't hear what they're saying..."

Giving her a slight nod he pulled out a pistol and cocked it, she watched gleefully as took his aim and shot her, taking another swig of the wine.

Things were about to get interesting, oh was papa mad, and oh how she loved it whenever he got that look on his face, that sadistic grin sent shivers down her spine. Trafalgar Law, he must be something special, to be able to elicit so much rage out of papa, then again, he was threatening the very foundation they were standing on.

As he released Baby-5 from his strings, sending her off on her mission, she came up behind him, draping her arms over his shoulders as she offered him the wine. "Wine? You seem a little tense." She said with a smile, holding on tight as he took the bottle from her and stood up, taking a long draught.

"That little punk, I hope Vergo beats him into oblivion." He said pulling her over his shoulder and setting her down gently on her feet, taking another long drink before handing her back the bottle.

She giggled, finishing up the bottle. "Oh papa. I'm sure Uncle Vergo's going to have a lot of fun." She said as she followed him into the palace.

Settling down in the chair by the window she listened fervently as the fight between Vergo and Law ensued, unsure of what to actually make of it. Her uncle Vergo definitely had the upper hand, but it would seem that this Law character was quite confident in the fact that he would prevail, which was honestly laughable. The introduction of Vice Admiral Smoker to the fray did not look good for them, although she was sure that Uncle Vergo could hold his own against almost anyone, but the retrieval of Law's heart did make her somewhat uneasy, and she could tell her father felt the same way.

"Sweetheart, go find me another bottle of wine."

She frowned as she got up from the chair, reluctant to leave, unwilling to miss the conclusion of the fight, but his tone and stance made her heed his words, although she had an inkling that he needed something a little stronger than just wine. Rushing down the the cellar she grabbed a bottle of the best vintage she could find and two glasses, deciding that there was no reason why she could not have some more too.

As she neared the room again, she could hear the rumbling of crashing metal and debris, and her uncle's voice come out over the Den Den Mushi. She could not make out what was being said, but from what she did catch, she was able to deduce that something was terribly wrong.

Stepping into the room she heard that guy's voice come through the transmission, _"_ _... worry about yourself for now… this room is about to be blown away. Later… 'pirate' Vergo."_

She froze, the glasses slipping from her hands and landed on the carpet with a dull thud, as she tried to process the words she just heard, her heartbeat increasing, a dryness building up in the back her throat. "Papa?" She asked hoarsely from the door, "What just happened?"

When he finally looked up at her, there was an unreadable expression plastered on his face, and it unnerved her to see him like that, "Papa?" She asked again, finding her voice. "What-"

The sound of the Den Den Mushi interrupted her, it was Buffalo and Baby-5, shouting something about Caesar, "What the…!?" He exclaimed, snapping out his thoughts, a sinister grin returning to his face. "Retrieve him as quickly as possible and return the Dressrosa!" He yelled into the receiver, slamming it down as a laugh tore through him.

Shaking herself from her stupor, she made her way over to him, handing him the bottle before climbing onto his lap. "Papa? What happened with Uncle Vergo?" She tried again, as his arm came down around her, his chin resting on her shoulder.

"Your uncle Vergo," he said as calmly as he could, "... That shitty brat... We underestimated him."

She let out a gasp, "No," she breathed, the tears welling up in her eyes. It was inconceivable that someone could possible cut down her Uncle Vergo. "But he's going to be okay right? He's coming back to us right?" She asked as the tears began to fall.

Releasing the arm he had around her, he pat her gently on the head. "I'm afraid not," he started, as the Den Den Mushi went off again, cutting him off. " _... Joker. Can you... hear me? This is… Monet…!"_

He smiled, picking up the receiver, "Monet...! How splendid that you're still alive…"

"They took out Vergo…!" Dulcinea screamed into the receiver, grabbing his arm.

Pulling his arm away from her he continued, "Caesar too, it seems… But I think Baby-5 and Buffalo will manage to retrieve his body. This was an oversight on my part… I really put you guys in a tough position…"

He let out a sigh, as he ran his free hand along her arm, attempting to calm her down. "But in order to be absolutely safe, I need to eliminate those brats. In Lab 3, there exists the same weapon that was in Labs 1 and 2, which wiped out the island four years ago, it's still there now, waiting…! Pressing the detonation switch now… would make Caesar, who can withstand the poison gas, the only survivor… the switch is in…"

 _"_ _Say no more, Joker. I thought this might happen from the very start."_

Dulcinea let out a sob as Monet's voice came over the Den Den Mushi, burying her face into his shoulder as he continued to gently stroke her arm.

 _"_ _I'm in front of the switch right now… the explosion should reach even the tanker, I hope you don't mind losing that ship as well?"_

"Sorry about this..." he said, placing a kiss on Dulcinea's head. "Take it all down with you… and die for me…!"

 _"_ _Understood. Young master."_

Dulcinea trembled against him, this was not happening, she was not losing two family members on the same day. How could she ever look Sugar in the eye again, knowing that her sister sacrificed herself for the sake of her father. She sighed, attempting to regulate her breathing, then again Sugar would probably understand, they were all more than willing to lay down their lives for this man, she too would do whatever it took to see him thrive.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart." He said tenderly, pulling her tighter against him. A sad frown passing across his face as he picked up the receiver to Vergo's snail. "I'm sorry, old friend… you go back further with me than anyone else. Thanks for everything up until now."

There was a heavy silence in the air as Vergo's Den Den Mushi smiled, Dulcinea picked up her head and grabbed his hand. "Uncle Vergo, you're such a fucking liar!" She screamed suddenly, the tears streaming down her face. "You promised to come back soon."

 _"_ _I'm sorry Dulcinea-chan. It would seem I won't be seeing you for a while. Listen to your father okay, you're all he has now."_

"No!" She shrieked, as a sob tore through her, "You promised! You promised!"

Doflamingo took a long drink from the bottle as a loud explosion came through the snails before Vergo's Den Den Mushi slumped down, disconnecting his call. An audible gasp passed through Dulcinea as she froze in his arms, her brain refusing to acknowledge what just happened, even though deep down she knew.

"Papa?" She whimpered, as he slumped down against her, the weight of his head resting on her shoulder again.

A cough escaped Monet's Den Den Mushi, causing him to lift his head, "...Monet." He was met with silence, "... Did something happen?" More silence. "ANSWER ME…!" He yelled.

The silence was defending, a smoldering rage began to rise within her, burning away all the sorrow she was feeling at the moment. It was inexcusable, the murder of her beloved uncle, the murder of Monet. She gritted her teeth as she violently wiped at her tears, "Papa." She said firmly, a fire flaring up in her eyes.

Releasing her, a deep frown formed upon his face, "I'm sorry, sweetheart, but I need you to stay here." He said softly, his strings contracting around her as he pulled her aside, releasing a bundle of strings from his other hand, a cage came down around her.

"Papa!?" She questioned, glaring at him from within the cage. "PAPA!" She shrieked as he grabbed his coat and threw open the windows.

Turning back toward her he gave her a smile, that smile. "I'm sorry sweetheart, I can't lose you too."

"NO!" She shrieked as he leapt out the window, flying through the air as he activated his skywalk. "PAPA YOU LET ME OUT!" She screamed again, knowing he could no longer hear her. "PAPA!" Slamming herself against the cage she let out another shriek as his strings cut into her side. "GODDAMN IT PAPA!"

Transforming in the Kirin she hardened her body and continued to rage against his cage, finally collapsing onto the floor in a fit of sobs when she realized it was futile.


	10. Beginning of the End

"Dulci-chan?" Sugar asked, entering the room. "What's going on?"

Picking her head up from off the floor she released her transformation, the tears still streaming down her face. "Sugar…" She tried the cage again, but it still would not give, not that she expected it to. "ARG!" She growled. "Stupid papa."

"Why are you in a cage?" Sugar pressed, approaching her.

"Because papa is an ass." She replied wiping at her tears before resting her head gently against the strings. "Hey, do you think you can grab me that bottle of wine?"

Picking up the bottle, Sugar brought it over to the cage. "I don't think it fits through the strings…"

"Ugh," Dulcinea groaned, slumping against the cage. "I wonder if there's a straw somewhere." She muttered to herself.

Sugar let out a small laugh. "No, but seriously what's going on? Where's the young master?"

Dulcinea only scoffed and shook her head, fighting back the tears. "I'm sorry Sugar."

"It's okay hun, I'll go find him." She said brightly, patting her friend's hand before exiting the room.

The tears fell again as Sugar exited, she did not have the heart to tell her that Monet is gone. Huddling with her back resting against the cage she fingered her pendant again, "He's finally gone and done it, mama." She said letting out a dry laugh. "He's literally put me in a cage. Stupid papa."

It did not take long for Sugar to return, "Lao G suggested he went out on his own…"

A slight chuckle escaped Dulcinea. "Yes, he did… I could have told you that, but you ran out before I got the chance… hey do you think you can change me into a toy small enough to slip through?" She asked with a smile.

"I wish I could." Sugar replied, taking a seat next to the cage. "So are you going to tell me what's going on?"

Dulcinea let out a sigh. "That guy, Trafalgar Law… he cut down Uncle Vergo…"

"What!?" Sugar gasped, "How is that even possible?"

She shrugged, "I don't know, I wasn't there to hear it… papa said they underestimated him… it's why he put me in here, because he knows I would have followed after him."

"So what happened with Baby-5 and Buffalo, did they collect Caesar?"

"I don't know, it seemed promising…" She sighed again. "This cage is annoying… I can't even drink… He could have at least left me with the wine."

Sugar laughed, "Maybe we can see if Diamante-sama can cut through it."

"Nah, no way Uncle Diamante would do that… even though I'm pretty sure he probably could… well maybe… possibly… either way, it's papa's cage, I doubt he would defy papa by setting my free…" She pouted. "Stupid papa, stupid cage."

Opening her eyes she let out a yawn and sat up. Stretching her arms up over her head again, rotating them as she tried to loosen her sore muscles which were stiff from having her body slammed against the cage over and over again. Probably was not the best idea, but hey, she was angry, at least she did not get more cut up, just a few superficial scratches along her left side. Suddenly she paused, the realization dawning upon her that she was no longer on the floor but lounging on the couch, her father next to her. "Papa?" She asked looking over at him, slightly taken aback by the expression on his face. "Are you okay? What's going on?"

He glanced over at her, the grimace softening, "I'm sorry about earlier, sweetheart. Things are about to get really interesting around here."

Earlier… a scowl formed on her face as she recalled that cage again. Then again, she could not say that she did not understand his reasons, anything less than that cage, and she most definitely would have taken off after him. She sighed, "It's okay… is Uncle Vergo really gone?"

"Unfortunately, yes…" he said softly, pulling her closer. "... Monet too… and we lost Caesar to that brat."

"What?" She gasped, he was right, things were going to be interesting around here.

"That shitty brat thinks he beat me at this game…"

She could feel him tensing with anger, evidently this Law guy had really struck a nerve, then again considering the fact that he had gotten away with Caesar of all people. Papa's whole operation depended on Caesar's S.A.D., without it they would definitely be in a bind.

He suddenly let out a laugh, startling her slightly, "He asked me to resign from the Shichibukai or he'll kill Caesar… that brat actually thinks he is in any position to make demands…"

She frowned as she wrapped her arms around him. "I'm sorry papa, I'm sure you'll make him pay."

He relaxed slightly at her touch, and offered her a reassuring smile, "Oh he'll pay alright… by the way, are you hungry sweetheart? You slept through dinner?"

"Oh, did I? Are you sure I didn't miss it because, you know, I was in a fucking cage?" She retorted letting him know she was still peeved by that, causing him to let out another laugh, his chest reverberating against her.

To say the morning was amusing would be an understatement, the morning was an absolute riot. Everyone was going crazy, the whole country was in an uproar, she could hear the people screaming from the outside. "They sure are loud out there." She said as she sat up and yawned, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

From across the room her father lowered the book he had been reading and gave her a smile. "Would you like me to turn on some music?"

"Yes, please." She said plopping back down onto the bed, as she buried herself back into the sheets.

He let out a small chuckle and clicked on the gramophone, the sound of a lone guitar filled the room, its percussive strum drowning out the cries of the people. Doflamingo leaned back into his chair, throwing a leg up onto the table as he waited for the inevitable call.

She halfheartedly listened to the ridiculous conversation, chuckling to herself as that Strawhat brat made empty threats against her father. These two fools, Trafalgar Law and Strawhat Luffy, actually believed that they had the means to take down papa, then again though, that guy did do the unimaginable and actually cut down her Uncle Vergo.

She frowned and felt that uncontrollable rage pooling within her again, her heart breaking to a million pieces as she recalled the face of her beloved uncle, smiling back at her just two days ago. Oh this Trafalgar Law, the things she would do to him if she ever had the displeasure of meeting him. How dare he raise his blade against her precious Vergo-san and strip him from her life.

"...Sweetheart."

Snapping out of her thoughts she sat up looked over at him, offering him a small smile when she realized he had been talking to her. "Sorry, papa, I didn't catch what you just said."

He gave her a smile, shaking the aggravation from his face. "It's okay sweetheart, go get ready, it's almost time to head down for breakfast."

Settling down in the large dining room, the first thing she noticed was the absence of her father, which was strange to her, considering he was the who asked her to go down there to begin with. Letting out a sigh she picked at her breakfast, wondering what was going to happen latter that afternoon. Sure, papa had a pretty solid plan, and papa's plans were usually flawless, and she was sure that there was nothing to be worried about, but for some reason she could not shake that sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. Somehow, deep down she knew that things were not going to go smoothly today, that somehow, her father had miscalculated something.

After a rather uneventful breakfast, she found herself the Hall of Suits, tucked away in her usual corner as her father addressed her uncles. This colosseum battle he proposed as a trap to keep that Strawhat boy occupied seemed rather interesting, although a bit excessive. How he managed to pull together a battle royale of that caliber within a day was beyond her, but then again this was her father, and he was capable of performing miracles. Would it be enough to contain that boy though? Papa sure seemed to think so, and papa was never wrong, well except for that one time… her eyes trailed over to the empty heart seat and she felt that anger flare up within her again. She decided that she did not like it when papa was wrong, and that by the end of this day, she was going to make somebody pay for the injustice imposed against her beloved Vergo-san.

Time continued to slip by them, the minutes slowly ticking away into hours, and somehow she had convinced her father that it was permissible for her to follow Diamante and the others to the colosseum. Then again, considering the fact that not only would uncle Diamante be there, but also Dellinger, Gramps G, Señor Pink, and Machvise, it was not too difficult to impress upon him how that would certainly be the safest place for her while he was out. Not that she particularly enjoyed watching the colosseum battles, but Sugar was going to be occupied down in the factory for the better part of the day and well, hanging out with Dellinger seemed far more interesting than sitting alone by herself in the palace.

The colosseum proved to be entertaining enough though, especially that poorly disguised Strawhat boy. She was not sure what to make of him though. Sure he seemed strong, that much he proved in the battle royale, but he also had this fun kind of air around him, and she was sure that if it were not for the fact that he was actively trying to destroy her father, she probably would have liked him. Still, he was amusing, and for the time being she found herself drawn to him as he wandered around the colosseum.

She had been goofing off with Dellinger when a loud crash drew everyone's attention to the outside of the colosseum. Strawhat Luffy had already been at the window yelling to someone outside, she had managed to catch a part of their conversation, but it really was not anything they did not already know. What made her come over to the window was when Luffy began screaming that guy's name, and Dulcinea came running up to the window just in time to watch her father cock his pistol. She could not help the sadistic smile which broke out across the face as she watched him pull the trigger, Trafalgar Law's body bouncing off the pavement with every shot. It filled her with immense glee to know that the man who stole a piece of her happiness from her was slowly dying by the hands of her father.

As she raced through the underground tunnel which connected the colosseum to the palace, a little part of her prayed that papa did not kill that man yet. She wanted more than anything to be the one to kill him, to tear him apart limb by limb the way he cut down her precious Uncle. Entering the Hall of Suits she felt that blinding rage take over her body as she saw his broken body slumped over in the heart seat. Words could not express the emotions coursing through her body as she instinctively transformed, a white fire enveloping her body as she charged toward the seat.

"Sweetheart, stop."

She skidded to a halt just a couple of feet from the chair, whipping her head toward the sound of her father's voice, eyes glaring daggers at him. "Give me one good reason to." She seethed.

"Because I said so." He replied, the smile slowly fading from his face as her jaw locked, the flames around her flaring up.

"That's not a very good reason, papa." She retorted, as she felt the fire building up within her.

He watched as she dropped her head down and shook out her mane, the flames washing over her as she stamped her front hooves, treading the line of disobedience. "Dulcinea." He said sternly, causing her to freeze, "I said stop."

She let out a snort, white smoke escaping her nostrils as she attempted to swallow her rage. She wanted to stop, she really did, but that burning desire to punish that man overwhelmed her. Before she could stop herself or could process what it was she was doing, she stamped her hooves again and bolted toward him again, flames rising within her chest threatening to burst out. Just as she was about to descend upon that insolent man sitting in her Uncle's seat she felt her father's strings wrap around her body, pulling her away, and the more she struggled against him, the tighter they got.

"Let me go, papa!" She screamed, flames sprouting from her mouth, as he lifted her higher.

"I'm afraid that will not be happening." He said with a devious grin as a cage came down around her. He did not have the time nor the energy to play her little games right now, and he certainly could not have her killing Trafalgar Law yet, not when he still believed he might have a chance at getting him to usePerennial Youth Operation.

"Goddamn it papa! Not this again!" She groaned as he released her from his strings, her body falling softly onto the bottom of the cage which was suspended from the ceiling in her usual corner of the room. "Seriously, you couldn't even put me on the fucking ground."


	11. Caged Bird

Dulcinea let out a growl as she slumped against the side of the cage, "I HATE YOU, PAPA!" She screamed down at him, glaring daggers as he glanced up at her and flashed her a bright smile before going back to pretending she was not there.

She had half a mind to rampage inside the cage, to rage against him and show her displeasure, but she knew quite well that it would have proved nothing. So she did the only thing she could and settled down against his cage and quietly watched what was going on below her. His conversation with the former King Riku intrigued her, although she could not honestly say that it surprised her that Violet had betrayed them, but she was sure that Gladius would be quite upset when he found out. Either way it did not change much, Strawhat Luffy would be distracted by the colosseum battle, and Trafalgar Law, well he was indisposed at the moment. She was curious though, as to what the rest of that ridiculous crew was up to, but whatever it was she was confident in the abilities of the family, although… these were the same people who defied the odds and cut down Vergo-san.

Then there was the whole situation with the Admiral, who seemed dead set on shaking up the world order and eliminating the Shichibukai, effectively uprooting papa and disrupting his plans. Papa's plans; they were amusing, and she was surprised that the world was not more terrified of him than they already were, for papa was the only man in existence capable of pulling off what it was he had planned to do, and that was to bring those lofty Celestial Dragons to their knees.

Why were they trying so hard to oppose him anyway? Pirates like Trafalgar Law and Strawhat Luffy must know of the atrocities committed by the Government in the name of justice, especially that Strawhat boy. Was he not present at the execution of Fire-Fist Ace? Such a shame that story, that those dogs would put out such a brilliant flame, and a little part of her was sad that she never had a chance to taste that boy. She shook the thought from her head. That was neither here nor now, and it had absolutely nothing to do with what was going on now, well except for the whole battle royale over his Mera Mera fruit.

Letting out a sigh she focused her attention back onto the screen projected before them. Grateful that he at least was kind enough to position her in a way so that she could watch the battle. The battle royale was winding down to the final stage, and as the five fighters got ready to fight something seemed off to her. That Strawhat boy, the one disguised as Lucy, seemed taller to her, perhaps it was a perspective thing, but she could have sworn he was shorter before.

"REPORT FROM THE FRONT RAMPART ENTRANCE! WE HAVE INTRUDERS! IT'S STRAWHAT LUFFY!"

The Den Den Mushi rang out across the hall and she felt a smug smirk cross her lips. Evidently, she was right, it was a different Lucy in the colosseum. She almost laughed when her father cursed into the snail, demanding to know what was going on, and had half a mind to make a snarky remark but decided to hold her tongue. It was evident to everyone that her father was beyond irritated with what was going on, and provoking him more was probably not the best idea. Although, it really did surprise her, that her father had been so distracted by everything that he had failed to notice the height difference between the two Lucys, it was unlike him to miss a detail so glaring.

She did not like it, the fact that her father had been so distracted, things were not falling into place the way they should have been. That feeling of unease returned, twisting in her gut the way it did that morning, and when the reports came in concerning the movements of the other members of the Strawhat crew, in that moment, she knew that this was the end of things as they knew it. Evidently the Strawhats were craftier than they had anticipated, and that they somehow knew more about the inner workings of this country than they should have; that everything hinged on Sugar's ability.

Letting out a growl Dulcinea felt herself transforming again, her anger and hate towards the crimes being committed against her family were simply too intense. She could already feel the heat rising within her chest, and when her Uncle Trebol's voice rang out that Sugar had been knocked unconscious, that fire raged within her; a white smoke escaping her nostrils. If it were not for this godforsaken cage he had put her in, she would have encased the whole country in fire and swiftly put an end to their insurgence.

Instead she had to watch in disdain as that one legged gladiator rush toward her father, sword drawn and determined. Time and space seemed to stand still as she watched him descended upon her father and with one swift motion slice off his head. A silent scream escaped her as that fire welling within her caught in her throat and she painfully coughed up smoke and flames. Immediately she knew that it was a string clone, yet even knowing that much, the shock of seeing his head separated from his body drove her to the brink of madness.

It took her a moment to compose herself, and when she did she let out a small chuckle. Those insolent fools, believing that they could actually cut down a god. Did they not know that papa was the sun, and that something so gauche could never possibly harm him? Then again, she supposed that in their desperation they could have possibly believed in something so ridiculous.

Watching those idiots down there let down their guard, just because they foolishly believed that her father was dead was simply priceless, and she could hardly comprehend why they believed defeating papa would be so easy. Seriously, it astounded her how simple-minded people can be, even Buffalo and Baby-5, believed that someone like Kyros could actually harm her father. She had expected more from them. Seriously, how could they miss the lack of blood? Have they never beheaded anyone before? Even she knew it was a bloody mess, for crying out loud.

The scene before her entertained her to no end, and for a moment she forgot all about her anger. Releasing her transformation she settled back down on the floor of the cage and watched in amusement as her Uncle Pica came up from the ground, disrupting their little gathering and picked up her father's head. She watched gleefully as they attempted to comprehend what was happening, astonished that he was still alive, and the look of terror on that bastard's face when papa mentioned releasing his birdcage, made her shudder in delight.

These morons had no idea what was about to happen to them, to the whole country, and quite frankly, she believed they all deserved it. It if were up to her she would personally burn it all to the ground. That ungrateful country of fools who took for granted everything papa had done for them. In ten short years he had single handedly restored the glory that was Dressrosa, and now these imbeciles were here to take that all away. She scoffed at the thought, it bothered her that they were all so blind to her father's brilliance.

Speaking of her father's brilliance, a smile crossed her lips as she watched that brute dash toward the string clone again, her actual father coming up behind him, a delightfully sinister grin on his face, poised and ready to release his Itonoko. In all honesty, she probably should have anticipated what was going to happen next, but she was too caught up in his light to properly brace herself for what came next. As his leg swung across the room, she could almost hear it slicing through the building, cutting through the upper levels, as well as the strings tethering her cage to the ceiling. She let out a yelp as the cage came crashing down onto the ground, her body slamming against the side and then onto the ground, drawing his attention to her for a second. He offered her a slight apologetic smirk as she sat up, wiping the blood from the side of her body which impacted those strings, before turning his attention back to the boy at his feet.

If it were not for the fact that Strawhat Luffy was right there under his feet, just begging for a proper punch in the face, she would have given him more grief about her current state, but he had his hands full and she was not about to interfere. It was marvelous, simply magnificent, the hit papa landed on that brat's face, and she found herself giggling like a schoolgirl as Pica tossed the trash over the edge and papa's birdcage shot up into the sky. Oh how she longed be be set free from the smaller cage she was placed in, so that she could witness first hand the spectacle that was his Parasaito.

"Can you let me out now?" She asked with a pout as Pica rearranged the landscape.

"Not a chance." He replied, his grin growing wider as she growled at him and gave him the finger.

"I hate you, just so you know." She said defiantly, although everyone already knew it was as far as the truth as it could be.

"It's for your own good sweetheart, we wouldn't want you getting caught up in this mess now would we?" He said as he made his way across the room, pausing to give her a sincere smile. "Besides, it'll be all over soon."

Perching himself onto the side of the palace, he grabbed the receiver to the Visual Den Den Mushi and proceeded to relay the rules for his little game. Dulcinea settled down against the side of her cage and crossed her arms across her chest, begrudgingly submitting to his will.

She watched uncomfortably as the family and the rest of the Donquixote army took their places around the city, in efforts to thwart Strawhat and Law from making it back to the palace. It unnerved her that she could not take part in that. She knew was just as capable as any of them, but papa had her caged up, and papa always got what papa wanted.

"I don't understand why you won't let me help." She exclaimed, loud enough for him to hear her.

Turning his attention back to her, he jumped off his perch and made his way over to her, squatting down next to her as a slight frown formed on his face. "Sweetheart, you know I don't like doing this anymore than you do…"

"Liar," she spat, cutting him off. "You're loving this. If it were up to you I would have been in this cage for the past four years."

He let out a laugh, "... only because you insist on disobeying me and sneaking out of the palace to mess around."

She scoffed, "Only because…" she started before stopping herself. It was unnecessary to reiterate her reasons again, she had already come to terms with how ridiculous they were. "Che, nevermind."

He grinned knowingly at her, "Oh sweetheart, you're being unreasonable again. You should know better than anyone how I feel, I don't understand why you always make such a big deal over such trivial things. Besides," he said gesturing at the cage, "This is for you own good."

She pursed her lips. Yes, she knew how he felt, she knew she always came first, she knew that there was nobody in existence that meant more to him than her, and knowing that she knew exactly why she would not be released until this all blew over. Still, she did not like it, did he not know that he meant just as much to her as she did to him? That is was destroying her to be forced to sit idly by while there was a hoard of people out there, gunning for his head. Oh how she hated feeling so helpless, so useless. She should be out there, fighting for him, defending him, putting her life on the line to protect the one thing worth living for.

"Stop it." He said coming to a stand, "You know I do not like that expression. Now be a good girl and I'll let you out once this is all over. I cannot, will not lose you too."


	12. Collapse

His last words hit her harder than she had expected them to, and an overwhelming amount of emotion welled up within her. Submissively, she settled back down inside his little cage, wiping at the tears spilling out from her eyes. In her mind he had always been invincible, and that nothing in this world could possibly hurt him. He was that unshakable rock on which she stood upon when the waves of life crashed at her feet, and yet, there was so much vulnerability in those seven words, which shook her to her core.

In them she finally understood everything. For the first time in her life, she saw past all the walls he put up, beyond that mask he had perfected over the years, all the way down to that broken little boy her mother had loved so dearly. The little boy who had lost everything he had ever known, who was tossed out of heaven into a hell so unimaginable that it completely shattered him.

There was no doubt in her mind that the wounds of Vergo's demise were still raw, and that they blistered within him the same way they blistered within her. She was sure that the pain of Vergo's death had opened up those long forgotten scars within him, losses that he had believed he had already moved on from, but underneath the surface of it all, those sores were still festering.

Drawing her knees up to her chest she wrapped her arms around her legs and allowed her tears to fall, the hurt to wash over her. It was all too overwhelming, and for the first time since she heard the news, she finally allowed herself to properly grieve the death of her beloved Uncle Vergo.

It was in that moment that she realized why she was actually in that cage. Sure, it was mainly because he loved her, because she was his daughter, because he could not bear to see anything happen to her, but at the same time it was so much more than that. She finally understood that for all these years, the reason she was never allowed out, the reason he refused to let her leave his side was simply because she was his weakness, and he would not have his weakness exploited. Accepting this fact, she resolved to not be bitter about her cage. It was all she could do to not completely lose her mind.

A heaviness lifted from her heart as she watched Sugar wake up, shaking in uncontrollable anger over the fact that they had momentarily subdued her. That in an instant, those imbeciles had effectively negated everything she had worked so hard to build up over the past ten years. That because they had underestimated those fools, papa's hold over the country was faltering.

As Sugar got up from the makeshift bed they had laid her on she shot Dulcinea an apologetic smile before venturing out of the room, resolving to restore the order which was lost. Wiping the tears from her eyes she wondered how in the world she would ever be able to tell her that they had lost Monet. She could not imagine the hurt that will rake through her friend when she learns that her sister is gone, that if the pain of losing Uncle Vergo was hitting her this hard, how much more would Sugar's heart break when she learns the news.

Lost in her grief she had not noticed what was happening until the voices of those two idiots filtered through the room, declaring that they were going to kick papa's ass. It almost made her laugh, but when the loose canon that is that Strawhat boy launched himself at her father, that gut wrenching feeling returned.

It was so inexplicable, it went against everything she believed in, but as they continued their banter, she could not help but feel that this boy, this kid her age, would be the one to topple her father. Her stomach twisted in knots as she watch them play with papa's puppets, the rage inside that boy's eyes was something she had never seen before, and when Trafalgar Law finally activated his devil fruit powers, she felt as if she had just been stabbed in the heart. This man, this man that she despised with everything she had, was none other than that young pirate Captain that she had owed her mother's life to.

Her emotions raged out of control as she watched him switch places with her father, allowing that Strawhat boy to land a hit, knocking him to the ground. She tried to scream, but her voice got lost in the commotion, and as Trafalgar Law sliced up her Uncle Trebol, she could taste the tears that she did not even realize were still falling.

It was funny how complacent one could become while living a life of luxury, with no worries, no fears, no hurts. Over the past ten years she had almost forgotten what it felt like to watch helplessly as someone she loved got destroyed before her eyes. A bitter anger boiled up within her as she watched those two tear apart the very fabric of her life.

That pain she felt as a little girl shot through her, and for a moment she was transported back in time, shaking in anger as her hand closed around that pendant that still hung around her neck. She could remember it all, that helplessness she felt watching that man assaulted her mother, that sweet taste of release the moment her knife entered his chest, that thrill of watching papa toy with that man's life, destroying his soul. As that helplessness washed over her she prayed that the rest would soon follow suit.

She did not like it, all this talk about the tenryuubito and the ope ope no mi, and this, Corazon character. She had not been aware that papa had a brother, that he had killed him, the same way he had killed his father. Such things were trivial to her though, nothing said or revealed about him could possibly tarnish her opinion of him, besides, she was convinced that those bastards probably deserved it. All it was to her was mindless babble, reasons this Law fellow used to justify his ridiculous desire for papa's head.

The part of their conversation that did intrigue her was this whole concept of the 'D.' She had come across that term many times in her studies, and there were so many varying opinions about what it meant. Ultimately, she was not sure what to make of it, and contrary to what he said, she could tell that this revelation clearly unnerved papa. It was strange, watching him lose, but not lose his calm, his movements becoming more passionate, fueled by both rage and dare she say, fear.

She almost laughed when papa severed that man's arm, his gun cocked and ready to riddle Law's body with bullets again. How that man survived the first attack was beyond her, but then again, this was the same man who walked away alive, after an all out brawl with her Uncle Vergo in his ultimate form. A giggle did escape her through, as he pulled that trigger, over and over again, long after the pistol had expended all of its rounds. It satisfied her so to see him broken and bloodied on the floor, and she had concluded that death was quite a good look on him.

It was a short lived satisfaction though, and a frown crossed her face as Strawhat made his way up from the level below, bellowing about that useless man Bellamy, that sinking feeling returning to her gut. She could tell that something inside of him snapped when he discovered the body of his fallen comrade, and for the first time in her life she did not enjoy watching her father fight. As he rushed toward her father, for the first time in her life she actually feared for his life.

"THE FUCK!?" She found herself screaming as Trafalgar Law suddenly appeared in front of her father, unleashing an attack and bringing him to his knees. She could feel uninhibited rage coursing through her body, and she could not help but share her Uncle Trebol's sentiment that he was a King and should bow to no one.

Things certainly were not going as planned, and when that brat stopped his foot from crushing that bastard's skull, she knew it was the tipping point. The amount of Haoshoku Haki being emitted by the two of them was overwhelming, and it astounded her that this boy was able to keep up with her father, matching him blow for blow, even landing a hit or two.

The world she had known for the past ten years was beginning to crumble at her feet, what she believed to be an unstoppable force was being grounded to a halt, by a mere child. It was inconceivable that these two could stand their ground against papa, and when that Law fellow continued to antagonize her Uncle Trebol, she knew that it was the beginning of the end.

She watched as the half dead Law managed to quite literally get under Trebol's skin, pushing him to lose his cool and ignite his slime. She barely had enough time to transform before the room went up in flames, irritated beyond belief that all she could see now was fire and smoke.

It was unsurprising to her that that Strawhat boy managed to escape with the once again incapacitated Law, that papa had gone after them unscathed. What was surprising was the fact that Trebol had been taken out, she had expected a little more from him, then again, this Trafalgar Law was once again, the one who cut down Vergo.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she heard her father's voice return to hall, mocking that boy. It would seem as if Strawhat was alone now, and she was confident that if it was just one of them, papa could not possibly lose. That confidence was shaken though, when she heard that boy snap and unleash what he referred to as his _fourth gear_. She knew that tone in his voice, and she could almost feel her father waver slightly as the unexpected attack came, sending him flying from the palace. A panicked yelp escaped her as Strawhat leapt off the broken palace, launching himself after her father, but at the same time, she knew that as long as her cage still existed, as long as that larger cage continued to contract, papa was far from defeated.

Suddenly there was a stillness to the room, the only sound surrounding her was the licking of the flames, and she twisted uncomfortably in her cage, longing to know what was going on. Before she knew it she saw her father kept into the air, suspended by invisible strings as his fight became airborne, Strawhat keeping up, fully armored in Haki.

She could feel the tides turning, and papa was more beat up than she liked, that Strawhat boy had done some serious damage. Even when that boy landed a hit that sent papa crashing back down, she refused to believe it was over. Even when the crowds below began to cheer, relishing his defeat, she refused to believe. Papa would never go down that easily, and the very fact that those bars surrounding her held fast, she knew it was far from over. Those fools, how dare they look down on him. Did they not know that he was the sun? Did they not know what would happen to the world if they shot down the sun? Did they not know the chaos that would ensue? Surely they were not stupid enough to believe that they were not setting into motion their own demise.

A growl escaped her as the voice of King Riku rang out across the country, declaring all of papa's atrocities, imploring the people to side with Strawhat. How dare he defile her father's name, how dare they all seek his blood. A wicked laugh escaped her when she realized that Strawhat had failed, that even using all his strength papa still stood. The Colosseum announcer's voice rang out across the country, evidently Strawhat had used up all his Haki, that he needed _ten minutes_ to recover, that they did not realize the amount of pain and suffering papa could inflict in ten minutes.

Ten minutes.

It was how long her relief lasted. It was how much time she had before she saw the end flash before her eyes. As that kid connected with her father, she felt as if someone had reached into her chest and crushed her heart in their hand. A shrill shriek escaped her as she watched her father fall limply from the sky, a god, tossed out of heaven.

There was no doubt in her mind that it was over, that they had lost. Hot tears streamed down her face as the cage around her dissipated, a blinding hatred coursing through her veins. Losing all sense of reason a hot, white flame enveloped her as she bolted into the air, a deafening roar escaping her.


	13. Freedom

Her heart was racing as she rose into the air, it was impossible that her father had been defeated, but here she was free, and his birdcage was slowly dissipating. As she rose higher she could feel a heat rising within her, hate and vengeance boiling up inside of her, as heavy tears fell from her eyes.

She could barely breathe as she choked back her sobs, an overwhelming amount of emotion coursing through her veins. She did not care anymore, if anyone saw her, what they would think, all that mattered now was that she found him. He was down there somewhere, shattered by some nobody, broken and beaten, and she needed to rectify that.

As she twisted about in the sky, she could feel their eyes on her, as they looked to the sky to see that birdcage fall, they surely also saw the figure of the Kirin, emerging from the ashes of the palace.

Oh the irony.

She would have laughed if she had not be so consumed by grief. She could almost hear the crowds now, gasping in awe of her, declaring the end of an era, mistaking her appearance as a sign of change. Those imbeciles, oh how she would have loved to unleash her fury on them, burn them all to the ground, but now was not the time for such things. She had more pressing matters to attend to, the most important being, finding her father.

Scanning the destruction below her she desperately searched for him, and when she caught a flash of pink, of crushed feathers that she knew all too well, she began to fall like a shooting star. Plummeting toward the ground, her flames leaving a trail of light behind her.

She released her transformation sometime during her descent, landing softly on her feet she scanned the area. Pushing her way through the crowd she reached him just as a group of Marines hoisted him up, indignantly wrapping a series of seastone chains around him. She found herself screaming as she rushed toward him, a series of hands coming down around her, filthy Marines attempting to restrain her, telling her it was alright now, that they had the monster contained.

Monster.

He was no monster. He was a god, he was the sun, he was her everything.

"Ma'am, you need to calm down."

She twisted under the grip of the three Marines restraining her. _Calm down!?_ She wanted to scream, how in God's name was she supposed to calm down when they literally just dragged her father away in chains.

"Ma'am, perhaps we can help you find your family…"

"My family?" She half whispered, half screamed, all the energy draining from her as she ceased her struggle and fell limp in their hands. "My family…" she whispered again, her eyes following the receding figure of her father. "My family was destroyed by those monsters."

The Marines released her, and the one who had been speaking came up in front of her offering her a sad smile. "I'm sorry."

She looked up at him, shuddering as she let out a sigh, and she felt those tears fall again. Glancing around her she took in all the destruction caused by his birdcage, by their battle. She could barely recognize where in the city she stood, the palace was in shambles in its new location so high above them. "My family, my home, my everything…" A sob escaped her as her eyes fell upon her father's ruined jacket. "... I have nothing left."

The young Marine stood frozen in place as she suddenly grabbed onto him, collapsing into him as sobs racked through her body. Apprehensively, he put his arm around her and pat her gently on the back, allowing her to grieve her loss.

"They destroyed everything…" She choked out between sobs, burying her face into his shoulder.

"Hey, at least you're free now…" he offered, knowing it was not much.

A slight chuckle escaped her. "Free." She scoffed. This was not the kind of freedom she wanted. Oh what she would give to be back inside papa's cage. She felt her sorrow slipping away, twisting into some form of bitter hated. Straightening herself up she wiped at her tears and gave him a forced smile.

"Thank you." She said softly.

"Just doing my job, ma'am." He replied. "But I do have to get back to my post, are you going to be okay?"

"I think I'll manage."

As the Marines cleared the scene, she found herself standing before his trampled coat, and its despondent state reminded her of her own shattered heart. Bending down she collected his broken glasses, folding them neatly before slipping them into her pocket. Picking up the coat she shook it out, an anger flashing in her eyes.

How dare they. How dare they treat him with such disrespect. Picking the debris off of it she continued to clean it, restoring it as best as she could to its former glory. As she worked she had debated running back to the palace to grab a fresh one, but this one was his favorite, the original one.

When she was satisfied with the state of the jacket, she draped it over her shoulders and made her way down the hole inside the now ruined colosseum, into the underground port. The place was a complete disaster, rubble and abandoned crates everywhere, pirates and merchants scrambling everywhere looting what the could. Most of the ships docked there had already departed, or were completely destroyed by this birdcage. Picking her way along through the throng of people and debris, she could not help but wonder if her father had spared his own ship, which was now her only hope of survival.

Now that King Riku was back on the throne, and that Violet, or rather Viola had returned to her father's side, it was only a matter of time that the Princess would remember her. She had no doubt in her mind that Violet would not tolerate her existence, which saddened her to a point. Over the past ten years she had grown rather fond of that woman, although unlike Gladius, she could not say she was entirely surprised by her sudden betrayal. In the end, she understood where Violet's heart lied, the resentment she must have harbored for papa, although she had to admit, Violet had painted a pretty impressive mask.

Finding her way down into a small hidden cove, she breathed a sigh of relief as she caught sight of that magnificent bird. A bright smile crossed her face as she raced up the gangplank, her smile wavering slightly when her feet finally landed on the deck and she realized that although she had the ship, she had absolutely no means to sail it. What did she know about sailing? Papa never let her out, over the past eighteen years of her life she had only been on a ship five or so times, every time as a passenger. Sure she had read all the books, learned everything she could but experience, that she was lacking. She would need to find a crew, she would need to find at least ten people who could help her man the sails and navigate the ship.

Shaking off the jacket which hung on her like a mantle she picked her way back out and up to the streets of Dressrosa. People were still meandering here and there, picking through the rubble of what used to be their homes, searching for their lost treasures and family members. Her hand instinctively went up to her chest and closed around her mother's pendant, the only true treasure she had ever owned.

As she wandered the streets, she kept her eyes open to anyone who might be of use to her. Surely there were still people out there loyal to her father, willing to join her on her quest to free him from the clutches of the Marines. Where to find them was a more pressing issue, the general populace of the country seemed to swing their loyalty back to King Riku, and a part of her could not blame them for doing so. Her father's tactics, although successful, were probably not the most favorable, and even she was not blind to the fact that what he did to control the country was pretty atrocious.

Still, she had to admit she agreed with papa's grander plan, that this country was but a stepping stone, and as long as they had a false sense of hope she was okay with that farce. What she was not okay with was the sight of her father in chains, a sight she found herself faced with as she had somehow wandered into the area where they were holding her family.

"Ma'am," came the voice of that helpful Marine from earlier. "You're not supposed to be here. This area is restricted."

"Please," she said, offering him the sweetest smile she could conjure. "I just want to see him up close, just for a minute…"

"I'm sorry ma'am, but that's Donquixote Doflamingo…" He replied faltering slightly. "... even though he's restrained... your safety cannot be guaranteed…"

She wanted to laugh in the poor boy's face. What did he know of _Donquixote Doflamingo_ and her safety. Instead, she pouted slightly, batting her lashes she turned on her charms, "Please Mister Marine, I have nothing left to live for, all I want is to look into the eyes of the man responsible."

"But…" he stammered, falling under her spell.

"One minute is all I ask…"

He gazed at her nervously, and reluctantly conceded. "Fine, one minute."

Grinning to herself, she slowly made her way over to her father, her heart pounding inside her chest. She could tell he had already regained his consciousness, despite the fact that he was sitting there, perfectly still with his head hung and eyes closed.

When she finally stopped in front of him she could feel him shifting, the chains rattling underneath him as he lifted his head towards her. Reaching into her pocket she fished out a fresh pair of glasses and slipped them onto his face before offering him a small smile.

"Papa." She said softly, reeling in the emotions swimming around inside of her.

Returning her smile he settled back against the crates they had placed him in front of. "Sweetheart," he replied, his smile growing a bit wider. "I see you're finally free."

"Stop it papa." She said holding back her tears. "You and I both know I preferred the cage over whatever this is."

Letting out a sigh his smile wavered slightly. "It would seem I miscalculated."

"Just a little."

"Those brats have no idea what they're up against now."

A frown settled on her face. "Who cares about them? What I would like to know is what I'm suppose to do about this?" She asked gesturing toward him and the rest of the family. "I cannot possibly take down so many Marines at once."

He let out a laugh, "I'm sure you'll figure something out, sweetheart. You're a smart girl."

"Ma'am?" Came the concerned voice of that young Marine, it would appear that his laughter caught the Marine's attention and he saw it as a threat.

"I'm fine." She shouted back at him before turning her attention back to her father. "I'm sorry papa, that I can't do more right now. I will find a way to fix this…" She said, the tears slipping out.

"Now sweetheart, don't be like that. I'll be fine, don't have such little faith in me, you should already know that victory is in my veins."

Wiping the tears from her eyes, a sad smile formed on her lips. "Oh papa," she whispered. "You have no idea how much I love you."

"I have an inkling, sweetheart. For you're my greatest love of all."

It took everything within her power to simply not throw herself onto him, and with a sad smile she turned from him and made her way back to the Marine who was shifting nervously from foot to foot.

"Thank you." She said as she came up next to him. "I think I might just make it through this after all."

"You're welcome, ma'am. Glad I could be of service."

She gave the young Marine another smile before venturing off on her mission to find a crew, stopping suddenly when it dawned upon her that Baby-5 had not been there, chained up with the rest of the family. She would have to find her, but for now, finding a crew to help her sail papa's ship was more pressing.


	14. The End

As the next few days passed, she found that it was far easier to find people willing to join her cause than it was to weed them out. Some were too over zealous, others she simply did not like the look of, in the end she was able to select a group of a dozen or so sailors to stand by her side and help her sail that massive ship. By the time she had everything settled and was ready to set sail, word had arrived that retired Marine Vice Admiral Tsuru and retired Admiral Sengoku had arrived, that and that the Strawhats were finally on the run.

She did not like the idea of having two more high level Marines to deal with, but at least once they were out on the open seas it should be easier for her to manage. Besides, her real goal here was to free her family, if she had Sugar by her side, three Admirals should not be a problem. It was a shame though, that she had to let the Strawhats go, that for the meantime she would not be able to have the satisfaction of avenging her father, but she was not foolish enough to believe that she actually stood a chance against all of of them together.

When she finally pushed off into sea later that night, the sight Happo Navy fleet in the distance caught her attention, and she found herself calling for a halt. Transforming into the Kirin she gracefully leapt into the air, closing the distance between the two ships via the clouds and perched herself onto the mast of the main ship. From her perch she was able to locate the person she was looking for.

Standing off to the side by herself, Baby-5 was leaning against the railing of the ship, looking positively ill, while the rest of the ship was incapacitated, most likely due the the massive banquet they just had. Dropping down from the sky, Dulcinea landed softly next to the woman, startling her slightly.

"Baby-5." She said flatly, when all she got in response was wide eyes and a confused stare.

The young woman continued to blinked at her, her mouth agape, trying to figure out where she knew that voice from. "Dulcinea?"

Dulcinea let out a small laugh and nodded. She had forgotten then the only ones aware of her fruit powers were her father and her four, no, three uncles.

"Oh God, what have I done." Tears suddenly spilled from Baby-5's eyes as she collapsed onto Dulcinea, clinging onto her mane.

Dulcinea had no words for the young woman, at least not any kind ones, so she just silently stood there and allowed the young woman to weep.

"Please, tell the Young Master I'm sorry…"

"Tell him yourself." She retorted, shaking her off. "Come on, get on my back, we're leaving."

"But… Sai."

An indignant rage flashed across her eyes, and she stamped her front hooves hard on the ground. "I will gorge him myself and set this place on fire if you ever dare mention his name again."

Wiping at her tears, Baby-5 let out a heavy sigh. "But... he needs me…"

Dulcinea wanted to scream. How incredibly dense was this woman. " _I_ need you. _Papa_ needs you. _The family_ needs you. That man doesn't need you anymore than he needs another drink." She let out a snort, white smoke bellowing out. "Are you seriously throwing all of us away? Everyone who loved and _needed_ you for the past sixteen years?"

Baby-5 did not have any words for Dulcinea, deep down she knew the girl was right, that Law had been right. That she would be betraying her family if she went off with that man. Shaking her head Baby-5 felt the tears stream down her face as climbed onto Dulcinea's back. "I'm sorry." She sobbed. "I never meant for this to happen…"

"Honestly," Dulcinea said with a hint of vexation in her voice as she leapt back into the sky, racing back toward the ship with Baby-5 clinging onto her. "As much as I hate to admit it, it's probably better this way. Don't get me wrong, if I were papa I'd still kill that man and everyone loyal to him, just for the fun of it… but at least for the moment, I have someone to help me out as opposed to no one."

* * *

Doflamingo stared blankly up at the small porthole above him, grateful that he was a least able to catch a glimpse of the sea. It was unfortunate that Jack had been unsuccessful in his attempt to free him, and as the aftermath of that failed attempt settled around him, he could not help but wonder who else he lost that day. He did not like it, that feeling twisting inside of him. He did not like losing his family members, it pained him to know that in a week he had lost more loved ones than he had in a lifetime. A part of him still refused to believe that Vergo was really gone.

Vergo!

Who would have thought that in such a short amount of time, that brat would have been strong enough to cut down an armamented Vergo. He had truly underestimated them, even while trying not to.

All his hopes now rested on Dulcinea. Dulcinea, the simplest, and purest love of his life. Dulcinea, the fruit of his labor. Dulcinea, the one thing in this world he found worth living for. Dulcinea, his ultimate trump card.

For the first time in his life he had regretted not letting her out more often, so that she could have had a chance to flex those skills he knew she had. Even so, he had every confidence she would pull through for him, simply because she was his. He was a part of her, and his blood flowed through her veins. He knew that of all the people in the world, she would be the one to not fail him.

It sort of saddened him to know that she was no longer that little girl who had been dropped at his feet ten years ago. From time to time he would find himself missing that little girl, so full of innocence. He refused to believe that he had corrupted her, yet he could not deny the fact that there were definitely moments when that monster inside of her would rear its ugly head. Still, there was a purity left in her, a purity he hoped he could somehow preserve.

He let out a sigh. There was nothing he could do about it now. She was who she was, and she was a woman now. Oh what a woman she had become. The spitting image of her mother, with a fire within her even he was not sure he could contain for much longer. Some days it would pain him too much to look at her, to see that woman reflected back in her face.

Such a shame what happened to that woman. If only she had given into him all those years ago, perhaps then she would still be here with them now, but Old Tsuru was right, enough with the 'what-if's.' What good would it do him now? It would not change anything, it would not bring her back to him.

Suddenly a wicked laugh escaped him, startling the old woman sitting outside his cell. He was certain that he had caught a flash of pink, of that figurehead he knew all too well. He had never expected to see that ship again, but its presence out at sea could mean one, and only one thing, Dulcinea. That girl certainly had a good head on her shoulders and he honestly should not have been surprised that she had found that ship. For she was probably the one person in this world who loved that ship more than he did.

Perturbed, Tsuru sat up in her chair and clicked her tongue. He must have lost his damn mind, but it was of no concern to her. What could he possibly do, seastone chained to the ship. _A lot._ The small voice in her mind said.

The sound of sudden gunfire and of boots running back and forth on the deck above caught her attention, and she almost leapt out of her chair to run up there to check on them. His laugh unnerved her though, and she stopped herself from reacting. She knew better than to leave now. He knew something that she did not, and she was not about to leave him unattended.

"Tell me, Doflamingo, if Jack had been unsuccessful, who else do would that man, Kaido send?"

"Fuffuffuffuffu," he continued to laugh. "What makes you think this has anything to do with Kaido, Otsuru-san?"

She narrowed her eyes at him. _Who else could it be if not Kaido?_ "Speak."

He grinned at her, amusement plastered on his face. "You'll see soon enough."

Up on deck Dulcinea let out a laugh and shot Baby-5 a quick smile, before continuing her rampage, setting Marines aflame, tossing others aside. Biding her time until Sugar returned to her, so she could make her way below deck and take down Vice Admiral Tsuru.

She had been lucky. It would seem that the universe was working in her favor when she came upon the wreckage of those two battleships, for Dellinger had been onboard one of them. The destruction of the ship afforded the little fish a chance to break free of his chains, and he had managed to somehow save the drowning family members around him by tossing them onto nearby driftwood. He then went to town on the Marines struggling to hang on, delightfully gorging them with his horns and tearing them apart with his teeth, having an all out ball.

She had to thank Jack for doing her a favor and sinking those two ships, as she was able to effortlessly rescue half her family. Especially since Sugar had been amongst them, and her ability was the one she needed the most if she were to succeed. Of course finding a key to their cuffs proved to be an issue, but with a little patience and a whole lot of broken lock picks, she was able to set them all free.

Tsuru stood frozen in awe and terror as the figure of a Kirin made its way down the hall, it's mighty antlers tossing aside the petrified Marines it passed. Tsuru knew she should move, that this was what Doflamingo had been hinting at. The Kirin paused in front of her, bowing its head slightly as a laugh escaped it. Tsuru suddenly felt very small and a strong desire to protect Doflamingo and his crew surged through her.

" _What is happening!?_ " The old woman tried to scream, but nothing came out. Suddenly it dawned upon her what had happened. It was not about the Kirin, but rather the little girl perched on its back. She had let down her guard. Somehow the Donquixote 'family' had survived the attack on their battleships, somehow that girl, the one with the Hobi Hobi powers had escaped.

Releasing her transformation Dulcinea approached the door to her father's cell. A brilliant smile plastered on her face as she picked up the fallen keys from the floor and turned the lock.

Doflamingo beamed with pride as she undid the chains tethering him to the ship. "I knew you'd figure it out." He said with a smile, shaking off the chains and sitting up.

"I had a little help." She replied as she shrugged off his jacket and draped it across his shoulders. "We will have to thank Jack the next time we see him."

"Fuffuffuffuffu, yes. What a splendid help he was. Although I have to admit, I was a bit concerned for the family, considering."

"Oh but our little Dellinger was brilliant." She exclaimed, throwing herself onto him and wrapping her arms around him as she settled down on his lap.

He pulled her close against him, placing a kiss on the top of her head. Words could not express how he felt to have her back in his arms, where she belonged. He had truly been terrified in that moment when Strawhat landed that deciding blow on him. The one and only thing which crossed his mind in that moment was how he had failed her. "I'm sorry I put you through all that."

She shook her head and buried her face into his chest. "No papa, don't be sorry. You did everything you could… it's those brats…"

Smiling he gently stroked her hair. "Yes, those brats… we'll have to deal with them sooner or later, won't we."

The papers were going to have a field day with this in the morning. He was sure of it. Oh what he would give to see the look on that shitty brat's face when he read the papers in the morning.

Sugar scoffed as she watched them from her spot outside the cell. "Holy hell guys, it's only been four days for crying out loud."

* * *

 _ **a/n: The End.**_

 _ **Hope you guys enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it. :) Just one note because it needs to be said. The thing with Baby-5, her state of mind, the 'conversation' she had with Law... it is all explained in a chapter of a fic found on dA. ff hates links but I'm gonna do it anyway, because it is a brilliant chapter and expresses what I believe should have been what Baby-5 went through. The link is:**_ ** _simply-scarlet deviantart com/_** ** _art/Ch-21-Thicker-Than-Blood-An-Interlude-613871973 (put in dots where the spaces are, but you already knew that. ;D)_**


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